Devout Dyad - The Rise of Skywalker Alternate Ending
by scorpiomoonvibes
Summary: What if Ben Solo hadn't died? Continuation and alternate ending of The Rise of Skywalker with Ben Solo ALIVE! Picks up directly after THAT Reylo scene. Rey and Ben explore their new relationship and find their place in the galaxy. Rey/Ben with plans to continue their story post TROS Force training and growing romance. ON SHORT BREAK. WILL CONTINUE AND FINISH! PLEASE DON'T HATE ME!
1. Chapter 1

**Preface: I am a *dyhard* Reylo fan. I just wasn't finished with Rey & Ben and the dyad concept. This is my version of how TROS should have ended. I hope to continue it as a story post TROS and explore Rey & Ben's relationship along with their force training and eventually training other new Jedis. Please R&R and let me know if you want it to continue! **

**Disclaimer: I own no rights to Star Wars, unfortunately. Maybe if I did, we would all be happier. **

*****Everything happens exactly the same, EXCEPT Ben Solo DOES NOT DIE. He simply passes out for a moment and Rey revives him, since their bond literally GIVES LIFE. Story continues right after this big Reylo moment, with Rey & Ben leaving the Sith temple. I did not rewrite the same Resistance scenes, as everything is exactly like the movie on that front. Thank you! And I hope you enjoy!*****

Ben Solo and Rey Palpatine exited the Sith temple shoulder to shoulder, holding onto each other for support. Both were so exhausted and elated that they did not speak. They did not need words to express how thankful they were to the other for being alive this very moment.

Above, they could hear the battle ending. Rey silently hoped her friends were okay. She didn't feel that Finn or Poe or Rose or Jannah had passed, but then again, she was quite weak herself.

Ben winced audibly and Rey felt his towering form shaking against her petite body. His left leg was severely broken and shattered. She instinctively gripped his side tighter.

"Let me heal it," she whispered fiercely.

He shook his head and exhaled violently. "No, you're too weak. It could kill you." Shuddering, he apologetically squeezed her shoulder tighter for support.

Tears began to form in Rey's hazel eyes. "Let's rest for a moment." Ben wanted to disagree, but he hung his head and let her ease him down onto his good hip.

They were almost to the odd, round entrance. Rey could see the circular rock that lowered them down here up ahead. Now, if it would rise to the surface again, that was another story. She tried to plan ahead if it didn't rise. How would she get Ben out of here? Could she pull the X-Wing below? Or would it fit through the entrance to fly down to get him?

Nothing seemed plausible, and Ben was growing paler by the second. She didn't feel so good herself. A drink of water or a cool rag would be heavenly right now. She felt awfully hot and shaky.

The ground shuddered abruptly, and a strange rumble, dull and low, coarsed underneath them. Their eyes met, panic stricken.

"We need to go," Ben said, taking Rey's hand as she hoisted him to his feet, both of them almost falling over in the process. She steadied him and their eyes met again; the sense of longing that was usually present in both of their visages was no longer there. It was replaced with something else entirely. Contentment, happiness, hope, uncertainty, shyness, along with a fear of losing everything they had gained only moments ago as their surroundings began to crumble around them. They had to make it out of here alive. They no longer had to be apart, driven away from each other by light and darkness. No, they could be together - two halves of a perfect whole.

Loud cracks and crashes urged them on, awkwardly half walking, half running on fumes, desperate to get out alive. Soon, they stumbled onto the rocky disc engraved in Sith symbols. Ben fell over immediately and turned to lay on his back with his eyes closed.

Rey looked around impatiently. It wasn't moving.

"Is it moving?" Ben asked breathlessly.

"No," Rey replied grimly. The sky above was at least a hundred feet away.

Ben sighed. "Maybe we can lift it."

She nodded and stretched out her hand, feeling the Force, almost electric, as it coursed through her. Something was preventing it from flowing through her uninhibited. What was it? She asked herself and found the answer to be foreboding. Her body and spirit were just too weak at the moment to support very much power. She pushed harder, gritting her teeth, willing the stone to rise. It began to shake and teetered in the air a few inches off the ground before Rey felt as if her head would explode. Collapsing next to Ben in a pant, the giant disc settled back onto the ground.

He gingerly pushed a strand of hair out of her sweaty face. "Let me."

"No, there's no point wearing ourselves out further." She shook her head. Below them creaked and groaned as more stone gave way. "Let me think."

Ben nodded, trying to control his panicked facial expression when a familiar voice called out to them.

"Now, this looks like a job for a general," a calm, direct voice called from the shadows as General Leia Organa's force ghost emerged before them.

"Leia!" Rey stood shakily, delighted to see her master and friend. Leia's ghost approached them calmly, much too perfect and gentle in this dark, decrepit place of the Sith.

"My dear Rey and my dear son." Leia smiled proudly at both of them.

Ben sat up on his elbows, tears in his eyes. "Mom?"

Leia beamed. "My sweet boy, let me help you." She leaned over and placed her bright hands over his leg. Ben cried out as the bones clicked back into place correctly. Breathless and in pain, he lay back down.

"Would you believe that was the first broken bone he's ever had?" Leia murmured to a grinning Rey.

"Mom?" Ben called out between deep breaths. "Thank you...I … I -"

"I know," the general smiled softly. "All is forgiven, my Ben."

Ben Solo laughed, like he had right after Rey had kissed him, and grinned broadly.

"Okay, that's enough sappy," another familiar voice echoed around a corner and Luke Skywalker appeared again. "We need to get these kids out of here."

The columns behind them promptly crashed. Rock and dust fell from every direction. The entire place was collapsing around them. Shaking, the stone disc they were on, cracked in two, separating Rey and Ben from Luke and Leia.

"I would say so," Leia agreed. Together, they raised Ben and Rey to the surface using the Force only moments before the entire temple collapsed into ruin.

On the surface, the battle had ended. Rey could see many ships she knew, including one very special one, along with hundreds she had never seen before, circling the Exegol system in jubilee as hundreds of Star Destroyers crashed into the planet.

Ben stood, his leg healed but battered, and took her hand. She turned to look at him, and they both coughed a laugh. It was a miracle they had lived and a miracle the Resistance had won.

"Time to celebrate," Leia appeared beside them. "There's still much work to be done."

"None of this would have been possible without you," murmured a thankful Rey. "Thank you, General."

"No, Rey. Thank you for saving my son."

"And for proving me wrong," snapped a snarky Luke, as he appeared beside Leia. "Ben, I'm sorry I failed you. I failed both of you."

"As I failed you," Ben sighed, looking down at his feet.

"No, Ben. You were seduced and manipulated. I was scared of you, as I was scared of you, Rey. You are both impossibly, naturally, immensely powerful, even more so together - a true force to be reckoned with. Take care of each other. Teach each other. Guide each other. You two are the future of the Skywalkers and the future of the Jedi."

"I'm so proud of you, both of you," Leia said to them. "A force to be reckoned with, indeed. Take care of the Resistance and take care of yourselves. And send my love to Poe and to Finn."

"Yes, masters," smiled Rey, her eyes full of tears. Ben squeezed her hand tighter.

"The Force is more balanced than ever," Luke continued. "The Sith are completely eradicated. The Force has called you both, a dyad, two halves of a whole, completely in tune with each other and the Force, to lead the next generation. Use your power wisely."

"Yes, master," Ben and Rey answered together.

Overhead, the Millennium Falcon flipped out of the atmosphere into the dark unknown regions on its way back to the Rebellion base.

When Rey and Ben looked back, Luke and Leia were gone.


	2. Chapter 2

**Thank y'all so much for the follows and favorites so far! I hope to update this story regularly! Enjoy! **

**Disclaimer: I own no rights to Star Wars, unfortunately. Maybe if I did, we would all be happier.**

Rey and Ben were not far behind the Millennium Falcon. Ceremoniously leaving the Imperial era TIE fighter behind, Ben climbed gingerly into the back of Luke's tandem X-Wing. His left leg was still throbbing but in a good, healing way. As Rey tapped in the coordinates for Ajan Kloss, her fingers paused nervously. She had been so elated about Ben's turn to the light that she had not thought at all about how he would be received by the Resistance. Sighing anxiously, she set her course and began the perilous trek out of the unknown regions.

Rey landed the X-Wing a few dozen yards away from the Resistance camp. Her body was a bundle of nerves, afraid the Resistance would turn on Ben immediately, or worse, turn on her.

"Rey," Ben murmured behind her. "Are you alright? I feel your anxiety."

Ben understanding her and being so close almost made her more nervous. "Just let me do the talking. Wait here."

The X-Wing's roof popped open and Rey jumped out, getting a head start on him. As she pushed through the think jungle, jubilant familiar faces, etched with exhaustion, greeted her. Hands patted her back. Clapping made her headache worse than it already was. But she pushed her way through to see the only two people she wanted to see at this very moment.

Poe and Finn were mid conversation, but froze in their tracks and burst into grins at the sight of her. The trio was united again and embraced in a tight hug. Tears streamed down Rey's face just knowing her little family was alive and well. Poe and Finn both sniffled, though neither would admit that they were crying. Rey could sense Finn's comfort in the ability to lay eyes on her, to know she was okay after all she had been through in such a short time.

As they pulled apart, still smiling ear to ear, Finn took in Rey's nervous expression that clouded her enthusiasm. "There's something I have to tell you," she confessed.

Poe's hands popped to his hips. "Is this another Poe needs to leave the room moment?"

Finn chuckled and pointed his fingers at Poe. "Ha, good one. Rey, you have _a lot_ to tell us. How did you do it?"

Other Resistance fighters chimed in, asking questions, rooting for her to tell the story of defeating the Sith. Rey blushed, not liking all the pairs of eyes on her, asking her to tell all about what happened underneath their battle. At least they didn't know she was a Palpatine. Embarrassed and worried about Ben, Rey shrugged off the question and tried to pull Finn to the side without success.

"I, um...I had help." Her voice was barely above a whisper.

Finn's expression of awe was replaced with one of confusion. "What do you mean you had help….Ren?" he surmised, and his face became a cold, calculating mask. Rey did not like it and surely did not like what it could mean for Ben.

A hand waved between Rey and Finn, breaking them up. "Wait a minute, what is going on here?" Poe inquired.

"Why would he help you?" Finn's voice took on a tone of disapproval.

"Who?!" questioned Poe, agitated.

"Because he's different. He turned!"

"Yeah, right!"

"What are you two talking about!"

"He is! He's no longer Kylo Ren. He's Ben Solo!"

As soon as Rey got the words out of her mouth, the entire jungle went eerily quiet. All of the Resistance stood in silence as Ben Solo made his way through the crowd toward her.

"I can attest to that," his deep voice sent half the Resistance backing away from his tall, dark figure. Slowly, still limping, Ben neared the trio.

One blaster went up, then dozens were pointed at him. He halted, hands halfway in the air with an exasperated, yet unsurprised expression on his face.

"Don't shoot!" Rey warned, power in her voice, holding out her hands toward the frightened Resistance.

Everyone froze, unsure of what to do and afraid of the two Force users in the midst of them. Finn, however, pushed his way around Rey and squared up to Ben, who merely glanced at him.

"Okay, let's just calm down," General Poe stepped up by Rey. "Let's see what he has to say. After what we've been through, any life saved is valuable -"

Before he had finished his speech, Finn threw a punch directly at Ben's face.

Ben hardly staggered, being almost a foot taller than Finn, but reacted defensively, grabbing Finn with the Force and holding him in the air, choking him. A blaster shot, from Poe, ricocheted toward Ben, who stopped it in midair as he had years ago. Ben's visage was pained, exhausted, and frightened - frightened that he would lose Rey over this. Shocked gasps lasted for only a second before the deafening silence overtook the camp again, afraid of Ben's power.

"Stop it!" Rey shrieked, sending a Force pulse through the air, knocking Poe, Finn, and Ben to the ground. "All of you, stop it! Lower your weapons!"

The Resistance followed suit, watching the rogue Rey with caution.

She stomped to the top of a large stump. "You will all listen to me, even you Dameron, Finn, and you, Ben Solo. This man right here," she pointed to Ben as he sat on the ground by her feet, "saved my life by sacrificing his own. I was dead, and he brought me back. He sacrificed everything for me, for you, for the defeat of the Sith. He is changed, turned to the light side. I know he's done terrible things, awful things. I'm not asking you to forget the ones we have lost or the battles we did not win. I'm only asking you to give this boy, General Leia's son, a second chance. I promise, if you would listen to his story, he was just as much a victim in this war as we all were, as I was….a lonely, scared child who was led astray, as easily as I could have been, because I'm….I'm..." Rey covered her face as tears flowed through her dirty fingers.

"Because what, Rey?" Finn stood, shakily, brushing the leaves off of his pants. He pulled her down off the stump, removing her hands from her face.

She sniffled, reminding herself to be unafraid of who she was. "Because I'm...a Palpatine. I'm Rey Palpatine."

Gasps of shock echoed throughout the camp, as everyone was now terrified of Rey. Murmured whispers broke the tense silence that was there only moments ago.

"The darkness you were afraid of," Finn understood and embraced her.

"Yes," Rey brushed her tears away, pulling back from her best friend. "I always knew there was a darkness inside of me, but I'm no longer afraid of it. I know who I am. I'm not a Sith. And I'm not alone."

"You've never been alone," Ben rose, an apologetic look on his face. He lent a hand to Poe, who surprisingly took it. "What she says is true. I am sorry for what I have done to you, all of you, to my mother and father, to Rey. I have made peace with who I am as well. I am not a Sith either. I'm a Solo and a Skywalker. I am Han and Leia's son. It is true, I was manipulated and seduced. I am no longer Kylo Ren; I am Ben Solo."

General Poe nodded his agreement. "This is our general's son and he has come home." Holding out a hand, Poe and Ben shook with smiles lighting up their faces.

The Resistance followed suit, overjoyed with victory, and they could not deny this boy that was Leia's son. As only the light side could, the Resistance embraced Ben, delighted in having the one that was lost be returned. Everyone congregated in pure jubilee.

"There's more. We will explain it all later," Rey whispered to Poe and Finn as the happy crowd swarmed around them.

"We?" Poe questioned, raising a brow.

An innocent blush rose in Rey's cheeks and Poe smirked.

"Am I missing something right now?" Finn asked.

"How does it feel to be on the outside of the conversation? I wouldn't know," glared Poe, as he tackled Finn and Rey in another bear hug.

As Rey emerged from her friends, laughing, hair a mess from their antics, her eyes met Ben's across the way where he was speaking to an older gentleman he had known from childhood. She could sense his calm demeanor, laced with humbleness and happiness, finally feeling at home. A smile inched up her face as she took him in, broken and battered, but altogether lovely. He belonged here, with her.

His gaze held the same emotion, pure and sweet. As others kept raucously celebrating, Rey and Ben meandered around the crowd toward each other until it was only them. Again, they didn't have to say anything, they both felt it - joy and hope mixed with shyness and uncertainty. Rey shyly ducked her eyes away from Ben's intense gaze. He touched her cheek, meeting her eyes again, and they embraced one another tightly with Ben's chin resting on the top of her head, knowing in full certainty that they were safe and secure and together.

***Thank you for reading! There will only be one more chapter that is still set in the movie - the last scene on Tatooine plus a small flashback to Rey and Ben creating lightsabers! Please R&R. Again, thank you soooo much for taking time to read my story. :) #reyloforever #bensolodeservedbetter ****


	3. Chapter 3

****Thank y'all so much for the follows, favorites, and reviews! It's been a blast writing this story. This is the last chapter set in the movie. Originally, I had planned to stop here, but I just don't think I can!*****

**Disclaimer: I own no rights to Star Wars, unfortunately. Maybe if I did, we would all be happier. **

The war may have been won, but it was far from over. There was still much work to be done by the Resistance. After the battle of Exegol, all remaining First Order ships had to be hunted down and destroyed. The New Republic had been decimated by Starkiller Base and had yet to be rebuilt. No new government had been established for the galaxy. Without Leia, it would not be an easy feat to rise a Republic from the ashes. Much of the galaxy had learned to live in fear of the First Order and was not keen to live under a new government, no matter how good the intentions of the Resistance were. As active generals, Poe and Finn took it upon themselves to contact each individual system, starting with those that had believed in the New Republic before it was destroyed. It was a difficult, daunting task, but no one was more equipped than the two generals. Rose and Jannah were assigned the duty of creating a small, local governmental system for the remaining Resistance members and any newcomers that happened upon their base.

As for Rey and Ben, they had another matter to tend to first.

They were all that was left of the Jedi Order in the entire galaxy. Although Ben had abandoned the Jedi teachings, he still knew a great deal more about the religion than Rey had learned in her short time studying the ancient texts. However, there was one thing omitted from the texts that was pertinent for a Jedi to know - how to construct a lightsaber.

The sabers of Luke and Leia had served them well, but it was time to lay them to rest along with their masters. It was time for the Jedi to be reborn and for Rey and Ben to create new, personal weapons.

Once their new weapons were created, they set course for Tatooine, along with BB-8, to the birthplace of Anakin Skywalker and homeplace of Luke Skywalker.

Seeing a desert planet filled Rey with memories of her home on Jakku. Interviewing the locals proved successful, and soon they found the simple Lars plantation in the middle of the never ending sand, much like Rey's AT-AT home.

A piece of old shrapnel served as a desert sled for Rey, as she skidded down the warm sand that was beginning to envelope the humble abode. This small act made Ben smile at her innocence.

Together they laid Luke and Leia's lightsabers onto a piece of cloth and folded them away underneath it, while Rey remembered what Ben had taught her on their quest for Kyber crystals on Ilum.

"The crystals have no color," he had explained in the caverns of clear crystals on the strange planet. "Their color comes about when you meditate on it for a few days, letting it absorb your spirit, and thus showing your spiritual alignment."

Using the Force, Rey buried the meaningful package in the home where Luke had once dreamed of becoming a Jedi. "The crystal is, by itself, the power source of the weapon. Like the Force user, the crystal is attuned to the Force. Without that attunement, the crystal is just a rock. And while a non-Force user could probably ignite and wield a lightsaber, the crystal is needed to be properly attuned to the Force. But for a Jedi, the lightsaber becomes more: it is a manifestation of a Jedi's connection to the Force," Ben had said to her, something Luke had taught him, and something she had read about in the ancient texts of Jaden Koor but didn't quite understand until she meditated with her own crystal.

Giving Rey a moment alone, Ben began heading back toward the X-Wing. Slowly, she made her way up the sandy steps, reminiscing on all she had learned about the meaning behind lightsabers.

"Blue, the color of the Jedi Guardians, represents righteousness, bravery, and physical strength."

Rey remembered the bright blue light that emitted from the two sabers that had belonged to her own personal guardians and were now buried deep in the sand beneath her.

"Green, the color of the Jedi Consulars, represents harmony, good will, mental and emotional strength in the Force. Someone who reflected on the mysteries of the Force and fought to keep the Dark Side at bay.

"Red, the color of the Sith, are stolen crystals from the Jedi. They are corrupted with hate, anger, and raged. These emotions are bled into them until they are crimson."

She stopped outside the Lars plantation, and looked down at the new lightsaber in her hand, made from a piece of her old staff that had served her for most of her life. With a twist of her thumb on the circular activator, the bright yellow blade ignited and sprang to life.

"Yellow, the color of the Jedi sentinels, the guards of the temples. Yellow crystals resulted from purifying the corrupted red crystals of the Sith, expelling all darkness that had been there previously."

Rey beamed at the color of her new saber - the color of her, bright and warm. All of her darkness had been eradicated, replaced with light. Her name may be Palpatine, but a Palpatine she was not. Yellow had chosen her, for her commitment to the Jedi Order and its secrets, for her desire to uphold its teachings, and for expelling the darkness within her that she had so desperately feared.

An animalistic noise startled Rey from her memories, and she quickly straightened. Before her stood a skinny, elderly woman with a large sand camel.

Ben was beside her in an instant, igniting his own new lightsaber that was purple in color. He worried too much, Rey thought absentmindedly.

"Purple, a rare color, represents moral ambiguity and reconstruction. A combination of blue and red, showing the user can wield both the Light and the Dark side of the Force."

Rey glanced back at Ben with a soft smile and a calm expression, indicating the woman was no threat to them.

"There hasn't been anyone around these parts for years," the little woman said. "What's your name?"

"I'm Rey," she answered habitually.

The little old woman eyed her suspiciously. "Rey who?"

She swallowed, unafraid of who she was.

"Rey Palpatine."

The woman stepped back, crouching behind her animal in fear, and her camel let out a howl.

"Don't be afraid. I won't hurt you," Rey's voice was steady and sure.

Confused, the woman peered around the beast, uncertain. "And who are you?" She pointed a finger at Ben.

"Ben Solo, son of the Princess of Alderaan," he answered. The woman eased back around, obviously recognizing Alderaan.

A twinkle in the corner of her eye, caused Rey to turn to her right. There, barely visible among the heat waves on the surface of the planet, were the Force ghosts of the most influential people she had ever met - Luke Skywalker and Leia Organa, the children of the first Skywalker.

Rey smiled, proud to call them her family.

"We are what's left of the Skywalkers," she said proudly to the stranger, "but we won't be the last." Ben took her hand, and they shared a soft, knowing look.

With that, the little old woman left, traveling on through the endless desert, leaving Ben, Rey, and BB-8 to watch the extraordinary binary sunset...together.


	4. Chapter 4

**Author's Note:**

**I feel like I need to clarify exactly what happened right before my story started. I mentioned that Ben didn't die but didn't give much explanation as to what really happened. (I think I was so excited about writing the first chapter that I just forgot about it lol). If you google ReyKenobi's video on YouTube titled 'The Rise of Skywalker Correct Ending,' this is more of what I had in mind, except I like the kiss BEFORE Ben dies instead of after. Basically, Ben DOES sacrifice himself to save Rey and dies in the process; however, Rey is able to spread what's left of their life forces between them equally, resulting in both of them being extremely weak but alive- which is where my story begins. Together, their bond is as strong as life itself, thus they are strengthened by each other as they continue on. Ok, that is all, just thought I should clarify since my intro to the first chapter was vague af. Moving on…I'll give more of this backstory in this chapter.**

**Disclaimer: I own no rights to Star Wars, unfortunately. Maybe if I did, we would all be happier. **

Rey was dreaming...or so she thought. Nothing seemed real, but everything she was seeing and experiencing was from her own memories. She was scared of Palpatine, her grandfather. She was scared she would become like him. She was worried about her friends, Finn, Poe, and the Resistance, and wanted them to be okay. She missed Leia and Luke and Han. She longed for Ben to turn to the Light and leave Kylo Ren behind.

All of her emotions were mixed up in short bursts of flashbacks to the past: Palpatine laughing at her and demanding she strike him down in anger. Poe and Finn embracing her after the battle was over. Leia teaching her despite knowing who she was. Luke backing away from her in fear of her power, then later telling her that confronting fear is the destiny of the Jedi. Han smiling at her when she bypassed the compressor on the Falcon. Ben saving her, bringing her back to life.

The memories were slowing. All she could see and remember was Ben. She remembered seeing his face as soon as her dead eyes focused. She had been astounded that he was alive, let alone that he had brought her back. His expression was one of awe, like a blind man seeing the sun for the first time, as if he couldn't believe she was real. She had never felt such pure, innocent joy like she had in that moment.

"Ben," she had said with such satisfaction, knowing for certain that the man smiling softly at her was Ben Solo, not Kylo Ren.

Rey had never had much physical contact with others, especially not intimately. In that moment, she had been so overjoyed and overwhelmed that she couldn't help herself. Her hand had found his cheek before she could think. Ben's dark eyes had held all the wonder of the galaxy as she closed the short distance between them until their lips touched passionately. She remembered the feeling of his hand on her neck and the way his fingers refused to untangle from her hair when she slowly and shyly pulled away from him.

She had never kissed anyone and had not been prepared for what the simple contact did to the rest of her body. She remembered almost panicking because her heart thumped so wildly, like it might burst out of her chest. Her extremities had an electrical zing running through them all the way to her fingertips and toes. Her neck and waist were still warm where his hands had been. And her lips, they might as well have been on fire.

And then Ben had smiled so broadly that his eyes and cheeks had crinkles. She had never seen him smile like that - the way his face lit up and his eyes ducked down as if he was embarrassed of the joy he was feeling. How beautiful he was with that smile. That smile gave her comfort, made her feel as if she belonged.

"The belonging you seek is not behind you; it is ahead," Maz Kanata had told her. Now, she understood.

It was a lovely moment that quickly became tragic. Rey could feel him fading from existence as his smile faded, and he began to fall backwards.

No. No, no, no, no, no. Not him. Not after all they had been through.

No, Rey decided. Ben Solo would not die. He would not be taken from her.

In her memory, Rey had revived Ben, sharing the small amount of life Force they had between them. In this dream, her memory failed her. In this dream, everything became a nightmare. Ben was gone and was not returning to her. He was literally fading, becoming one with the Force, and she was very much alone. Darkness was enveloping her.

Cold. It was cold here in the darkness. And she heard an evil, maniacal laugh that sent shivers down her spine.

A scream awoke her. She was no longer in the darkness. It was daylight. She was on Ajon Kloss with the Resistance. She was sitting up on a small cot in a tent - the same cot she had slept on for a long time. No longer cold, beads of sweat covered her face and neck while she gasped for air in the humid climate.

The tent opened swiftly, and Ben came to her side. He was dressed in a solid, two tone grey outfit. It suited him, she thought absentmindedly. Becoming aware of how sweaty she was, she pulled the thin coverlet up around her.

Ben's face was tight with anxiety as he squatted down beside her. "Rey, what's wrong? You were screaming. I felt much fear in you."

Rey shyly pulled away, ashamed of her nightmare, though she was unsure why. This closeness between her and Ben almost frightened her. He could sense her every emotion, as she could his. It was practically unnerving. They had had no time to discuss it since his turn and their victory. Life had been nonstop with the Resistance and their trip to create new lightsabers.

They also hadn't discussed their kiss.

She was breathing much too heavily and forced herself to calm down. Ben's deep eyes never left her. His hand fell naturally to her covered thigh, giving it a gentle squeeze. She tensed ashamedly, feeling the slight sting of rejection that coursed through him just now.

"Bad dream. I think I'm just tired," Rey murmured, rubbing her head and realizing what a mess her hair was. A jolt in her stomach reminded her that she had told Leia the same story of 'I think I'm just tired' when, in fact, she had something else bothering her. Now, she was giving the same story to her son.

Ben nodded his understanding, though his facial expression remained unsure. They sat in an awkward silence for a moment, not knowing what to say, until Ben finally reminded her of a council meeting that was about to begin.

"Oh, yes!" She jumped up to get dressed, forgetting Ben was actually there for a moment. Only half dressed, she kept the sheet wrapped around her while she rummaged through her messy belongings on the floor looking for clean garments.

Lieutenant Connix came around about that time to remind Rey to come get breakfast before it was gone. She barely stepped into the tent before quickly stepping back out.

"Morning, Rey, don't forget break- oh...my...Ben, Rey, I'm sorry. Forgive me, I - uh - yes," she managed to squeak out before making a break for it.

"This isn't what it looks like!" a blushing Rey shouted to Connix as the tent flapped closed again.

When she stood, garments in hand, she noticed Ben had an odd look on his face and wouldn't meet her gaze.

"I'll see you after the meeting," he said, though his tone sounded more like a question, before exiting the tent and leaving her, once again, alone.

Rey's head felt kind of fuzzy and confused, but she really didn't have time to dissect the last few minutes. She had a council meeting to get to.

Ben Solo hated when Rey had council meetings.

They had only been back on Ajon Kloss for less than a week, but the Resistance government was already grating on his very thin nerves. He could only have so much food, so much water, and so much time with Rey. And he also got the very obvious feeling that he wasn't quite 'welcome' here.

No one had said anything in particular. In fact, it was the absence of speech that he first noticed. Whenever he came near a band of Resistance fighters, their conversations abruptly ended. He could sense their uncertainty about him, their quiet fear. They were righteous in their assumptions. He _was_ dangerous, but he would never willingly hurt them.

He was also conveniently left out of any important business, though he understood that as well. He was the ex - Supreme Leader, after all. Though, a smart general might invite him to a council meeting pertaining to governmental procedures, since he had actually led an entire government for a significant period of time.

Although these things irked him, he didn't necessarily want any input or any flack. It was definitely true that he was a changed man. His hatred, rage, and anger were all thoroughly in check. He felt balanced for the first time in his life. He felt hope but also confusion.

After all, he had given everything up for Rey. Everything. And she hardly had time to talk to him, much less train with him….or anything else with him.

She remembered everything that happened, right? He had brought her back from the dead, killing himself in the process. When her eyes focused on his face, she had been elated, her smile brighter than the sun...or at least, it appeared that way to him. After all, she was the one to kiss _him._ She initiated it. He had always let her make the first move. When she was with Luke, she had initiated their first intimate touch. When he offered her his hand the first time, he gave her the choice. He never forced her. When she breathed that first breath of air again, he only stared at her beauty, memorizing her face in case it wasn't real. She was the one that pulled them together, though it was never against his will; but it was her initiation that gave him comfort. Now, whenever he initiated a simple, familiar touch, she didn't pull away, but she stiffened as if she was unsure. He was more insecure than he had ever imagined.

Ben had never realized how abused he had been his entire life. During his days meditating with his crystal when he and Rey constructed new lightsabers, he confronted quite a few demons from his past. His soul felt cracked and broken, and Rey had always felt like the glue that held him together. The first time he saw her mind, he knew there was something there. She was literally the other part of his soul. He wasn't sure if they could ever be apart now that they both knew this fact.

A few happy memories stuck out in his mind from childhood - memories he had suppressed because they reminded him of the Light. Mostly, though, he remembered confusion that bred fear. Everyone had always seemed so afraid of him and kept him at a distance, but a child couldn't comprehend that. That fear turned to anger at a fairly young age. His raw strength mixed with that anger and made him volatile; and the voices that he heard helped to quiet the rage that steadily grew as he did.

No more voices now. His mind was clear since the death of Palpatine. The only voice he longed to hear in any spiritual aspect was Rey's, but they had hardly been physically apart since then.

Yet, he felt like they never spoke.

Their conversations had remained brief, mainly revolving around the Resistance and the work they were doing. Poe and Finn had not made much headway with any systems. The resources on Ajon Kloss were running low, thus he was only allowed one quarter portion of breakfast this morning whereas earlier this week he was allowed half. They were having council meetings twice a day now, hoping for any news and any new solutions.

How he wished he and Rey could just get out of this place, away from the Resistance. They had their own work to do, a new Temple to build, a new Order to create. Surely, the rest of the galaxy could figure out something as meaningless as politics.

Refraining from his usual outbursts that helped release his tension, he ran the training course Rey had used when she had trained with his mother. It was a simple course, but his mind was distracted with worry and fear.

Donning the old Rebel helmet, he practiced blind with a training droid. Twice, it stung him, and he quickly threw the helmet off and slammed the bot to the ground.

He had felt Rey's presence only a moment before.

"Are we angry today, Master Solo?" she asked coyly, leaned up against a tree behind him.

He huffed, embarrassed. "I wasn't allowed much breakfast."

Her laugh was like bells. "We probably won't get much lunch either."

Ben turned around, stunned by her outfit. It wasn't her normal plain white number she wore almost everyday. It was a long dress in royal blue velvet, perhaps from his mother's collection. It was simple in decoration, a little loose on her, but it reminded him of the girls on Hosnian Prime, the ones he had seen as a child before he was sent off to his uncle. Those girls were children of senators and Republic leaders. They dressed in fancy dresses every day.

But Rey didn't. His Rey wasn't like those girls. She was a warrior, strong and brave. She was a survivor, a scavenger, an orphan. She did not look right in a fancy dress. How could she battle dressed like that?

Was this another step away from him? Another step towards the Resistance?

She was blushing, obviously noticing his distaste in her attire.

"It's laundry day," she explained bashfully. "Leia had given me this a long time ago, and honestly...it was the only thing that was clean."

"It looks good on you," Ben managed to say with a straight face.

She made a face. "It's not really my style. After all, where could I put my lightsaber?"

He sighed in relief. An odd whistling noise from near the camp caused them both to turn towards its origin.

"Back to it," Rey motioned toward camp.

"The meeting isn't finished?" Ben's voice had more of a growl to it than he expected it to have.

Her face fell a bit. "Um, no, but it should be over soon. I'll see you in a bit."

And then she was gone, leaving him, once again, alone.

For a moment, Ben had to let it all out. Whatever type of tree was near him, he hoped no one on this moon would miss it because it was soon a pile of splinters.

*****First chapter post TROS movie! Ugh...I had so much fun writing this. Please R&R and give this story a follow/favorite. Thank y'all sooooo much for the support. I LOVE writing this. *****


	5. Chapter 5

*****Thank y'all SO much for the reviews and follows. I'm having so much fun and hope you are, too.*****

**Disclaimer: I own no rights to Star Wars, unfortunately. Maybe if I did, we would all be happier. **

Was the damn meeting not over yet? Ben had refrained from destroying other parts of the forest, but he was on edge. He paced back and forth until little BB-8 rolled up to him beeping concerningly.

"Go away," he seethed. BB-8 rolled one rotation away before beeping and bopping more, like he was telling him to do something.

Ben ran a hand down his face, completely over the droid and over the Resistance. "I don't speak droid. Go. Away."

But BB-8 persisted and rolled right up to him, beeping excitedly and turning back around toward the camp like he wished for Ben to follow him.

He had time to waste. He might as well see what the annoying, little ball wanted.

As soon as Ben cleared the treeline, he felt it before he saw it - a presence he had not been close to in many years.

Chewbacca stood by a table, humming quietly and picking through the empty baskets from breakfast. He motioned for Ben to come with him on a walk down the side of the camp.

Sighing, Ben almost got emotional. Chewbacca had all but ignored him when he first arrived to the Resistance base. He avoided eye contact, successfully meandering away from wherever Ben was. Ben didn't blame him. He knew that Chewie still mourned his father's death, as did he. However, Chewie had been there to witness it; he had seen Ben murder Han. Ben knew he was not forgiven by Chewbacca and wondered if he ever would be. Though again, he couldn't blame the Wookie. It would not surprise him if Chewie hated him forever.

Right now though, Ben didn't feel any hate emanating from Chewie. In fact, he only felt sorrow, loneliness, and grief.

They walked together with BB-8 rolling quietly behind them. Ben was almost as tall as Chewie, his head clearing the Wookie's furry shoulder. As they walked past the messy camp, Ben remembered how much he owed Chewie. He had honestly forgotten how Chewie had taken care of him as a child, when his father was busy swindling other outlaws and his mother was performing her duties as general. Memories on the Falcon with Chewie flooded his mind. Ben used to ride on his wide shoulders pretending he was flying a new, sleek fighter, not the old Millennium Falcon. Chewie put him to bed more times than he could count while his parents were out. Often, Chewie would even stay with him at his mother's house on Hosnian Prime, just so Ben wouldn't be alone in the morning when he woke. As much as Chewie had loved Ben, he had loved Han exponentially more.

The guilt was beginning to overtake him. He thought he had moved past his father's death and made amends with it. He thought he had forgiven himself. He thought it was over.

Suddenly, Ben could barely breathe. "Chewie, I'm sorry," he managed to say quietly, running his hands through his wild hair. They stopped walking and sat down in some rusted, old chairs near the beginning of a line of tents. BB-8 whistled a sad noise, noticing Ben's anxiety.

Chewbacca's eyes met his for the first time in years. He mumbled a series of soft grunts.

"I miss him, too," Ben answered. "I would be lying if I said I didn't regret it everyday."

Chewie nodded and patted Ben's thigh that had, thankfully, fully healed. A Wookie often applied more pressure than necessary.

A thought occurred to Ben. Chewbacca was an excellent marksman. On Starkiller Base, Ben had been a still, hard to miss target after his father fell off that narrow bridge. He remembered Chewie howling in agony as Han died. He remembered being hit by a blast to his left side.

"Chewie...you could've killed me...for doing it...but you didn't?...Why?"

Chewbacca scratched his head and then his hairy armpit. His language came out nonchalantly, like he really wasn't that great of a shot.

"That's a lie," Ben smirked. "You didn't want to kill me, did you?"

Fidgeting, Chewie ducked his eyes and shook his head before mumbling something.

A laugh escaped Ben's lips. "Chewie...look at me."

Chewie did but didn't want to.

"I love you too, you big lug." Ben gave him a good punch in the shoulder, which he quickly learned he shouldn't have done. Chewbacca responded with the same gesture that sent Ben off his chair onto the ground and resulted in Chewie roaring with laughter.

"Master Ben! What are you doing on the ground?" C-3PO bumbled up to the motley trio.

"I'm not on the ground by choice, Threepio," said Ben, as he got to his feet. Chewie was still chortling behind him.

"I would hope not! The forest floor of Ajan Kloss is home to some of the largest earthworms in the galaxy!"

Rolling his eyes, Ben shoved 3PO out of his way. If C-3PO was talking to him now, it meant the council meeting had been adjourned. Part of him wanted to feel guilty for his treatment of the droid, but the other part remembered how annoying 3PO was. The guilt instantly vanished.

Most of the Resistance members had been in the makeshift kitchen preparing a meager lunch. Now, they were pouring out into the camp to hear what had been decided at the council meeting. As Ben Solo stomped through the crowd, he noticed the many pairs of eyes that avoided his.

He didn't care. There was only one pair of eyes he wanted to see.

Ben froze in his tracks. There she was. A kitchen cook handed Rey a sizzling plate of something that she immediately took to an old, fallen tree that was being used as a dinner table for the Resistance. That navy dress practically danced around her lithe, petite body as she navigated the forest floor. Maybe the dress wasn't so bad after all, Ben thought.

When she leaned forward to set the dish down, he noticed dark circles under her eyes. She must have been tired from her bad dream, or she was stressed from the meeting. He wanted to help her, to soothe her, to take her away from this nonsense and on to what really mattered. If only she would let him…

A hand clapped his shoulder, interrupting his thoughts. Poe Dameron sauntered around with a grin on his face.

"Didn't think the old Supreme Leader would spook so easily," Poe chuckled, clearly comfortable in Ben's presence. "Hey, I might could use your help later. We'll discuss it at dinner?" And with that, Poe was gone, off to talk to someone else.

Help with what? Didn't he know Ben had a plethora of other matters to attend to besides this pathetic excuse of a democracy?

It didn't matter, because at that moment, Rey had seen him and called him to come eat with her.

He sat down at the makeshift table, to the left of Rey, on the end seat. Across from him, Finn the stormtrooper took a seat. The meeting must have been intense. Finn's eyes were tight with anxiety. Or, perhaps, Ben's presence simply unnerved him.

Everyone began passing the dishes around, serving themselves, which surprised Ben. Usually, food portions were controlled and precise. Maybe a deal had gone through with a system and they were about to receive more aid.

"How was the meeting?" he murmured to Rey, hoping to keep Finn out of the conversation.

She only made a face, much like the one she had made earlier concerning her attire. Obviously, she didn't wish to talk about it right now.

"Have you been training?" she redirected the conversation.

Finn looked up then. It did not go unnoticed by Ben.

"Some. Chewie and I were talking." Ben responded with redirection as well. He didn't wish to share anything about his Force training with Finn.

Rey's mouth was currently full, and she almost choked. Awkwardly, she swallowed quickly, trying to speak. "Really? That's fantastic, Ben!" Her face beamed with pride that he and the Wookie were on speaking terms again.

He smiled back at her; he couldn't help himself.

Ben could feel Finn's agitation, though he didn't understand it. Could it be possible that the stormtrooper was jealous?

He would have to keep tabs on that.

Down the table to the right, Lieutenant Connix was whispering to Commander D'Acy. At the same time, they turned to steal a quick glance at Rey and Ben before giggling to each other.

Rey's face immediately turned bright red. She had seen it, too. Although Ben couldn't hear them, he had an idea about the gossip they were spreading, however untrue it was.

Lunch ended much too fast for Ben, but at least he had gotten more of a meal than what breakfast had offered him. Thankfully, there would be no more meetings until after dinner.

"We need to train, yes? Discuss the next step for the Order?" Rey asked him while they cleaned their dishes.

"Yes. We've gotten behind with these...meetings," he answered her, trying not to sound too annoyed but failing to do so.

She let her dish fall into the 'clean' bin with a crash. "I'm sorry, Ben. I truly am. I feel like I've left all this work for you to do alone. But I feel like I owe it to Finn and Poe to help them, though I'm not much help at all really..."

He quieted her with a finger to her lips. "Shh. Why don't we just meditate today? Connect with the Force?" he suggested.

Rey's shoulders immediately relaxed, and he removed his finger from her mouth. "That sounds lovely, actually. Just let me go and change."

Deciding he finally liked her new dress, he grabbed her hand. "No need."

She smiled softly at him, though her hand froze in his. This - now familiar - tension was grinding on his insecurities.

"I'll meet you at the training course in five?" Rey asked, naturally slipping her hand away from his and turning away from him.

His hand felt so empty without hers.

Ben trudged on toward the training course area, getting a head start to let his anxiety flow out of him before she arrived.

Rey wanted to do one thing before heading to training with Ben. Finn had seemed quite uptight in the meeting, and she wanted to check on him.

He was sitting alone, toward the edge of the camp, rubbing his eyes. She sat down next to him and set a hand on his tight shoulder.

"How are you?" Rey asked, meaning it.

Finn sighed. "I'm fine."

"No, you're not."

"No, I'm not." His head dropped. "I'm so stressed, Rey. What if this doesn't work?"

"It will," she nodded confidently.

Finn turned to look her in the eye. His dark ones were wide with fear. "Do you really believe that?"

"I believe in you… and Poe and everyone here."

He chuckled. "That's not the same thing."

"It is to me," smiled Rey. "No one is more capable than the two of you.'

Finn finally smiled and opened his arms for a hug. Rey gladly embraced her friend, feeling a small portion of his worry melting away.

"So, about Ben Solo," Finn began, and Rey pulled away from him.

"What about him?"

"He seems quite...I don't know...angry...agitated," shrugged Finn, trying to cover the emotions behind his statement.

"Are you afraid of him?" Rey asked, appalled.

Finn made a face, raising his brow, indicating that he might be. "Well...everyone kind of is, to be honest."

"He won't hurt anyone," she defended him.

"I'm not saying he would. I'm just saying, hes -"

"You know all about what he's been through, Finn. What do you expect?"

Finn raised a hand. "Calm down. I'm not saying I expect anything."

Rey could feel the heat rising in her as her best friend began accusing Ben Solo of whatever he was accusing him of. The anger she was feeling surprised her. Anger always scared her, reminding her of the Dark Side. But this anger felt different. She felt completely righteous in her anger towards Finn at this moment, and it terrified her.

"I have to go," she managed to cooly say, capturing her anger and holding it tight inside of her. She left Finn in mid-sentence and headed off to the training course.

*****I was really needing a Chewie/Ben moment. Hope you enjoyed it as well! I know this chapter was very Ben focused. Next chapter will be more Rey focused. Please Review if you want to see more! Thank y'all again! *****


	6. Chapter 6

**Thank y'all so much for following this story! I'm so grateful to each and everyone of you. I love writing this, but I'm also so happy just to be practicing writing again. All thanks to you loving my story!**

**Disclaimer: I own no rights to Star Wars, unfortunately. Maybe if I did, we would all be happier. **

The trees became a blur as Rey ran faster and faster away from Finn, away from the Resistance, and toward Ben.

Ever since they had returned to Ajan Kloss, she had been completely consumed by the Resistance counsel. It was her idea to come back here in the first place to rest regroup. She felt like she owed something to Finn and Poe and the rest of the Resistance, but she was exhausted. Thinking back to the few days with her kyber crystal, she remembered feeling so balanced, so in tune with the Force, so energized. Politics only drained her. It was not her place. Her place was with the new Jedi Order...and with Ben Solo.

She began to feel guilty for leaving Finn so abruptly and so angrily, but she had to see Ben. She wasn't truly angry with Finn, she realized. She was angry with herself. The look on Ben's face when he had said they were behind on training because of meetings - because of her being too busy - made her spirit ache. She had neglected him and neglected the Force. Ben _had_ become more angry and agitated, just as Finn had said; but it was her fault, not his.

All she had wanted for so long was for him to turn, for him to see the Light again. Now, here she was, somehow afraid of being close to him after that change. She was not unlike the rest of the Resistance after all. But why?

Her legs began to ache, so she pushed harder, reveling in the burning throughout her body. Why was she afraid of Ben Solo? _Why?_

Already training before she reached the training course, she closed her eyes, running without her sense of sight and letting the Force guide her. She could feel more than she could see. Her body was on autopilot; her mind was open.

_Why am I afraid? What am I afraid of? _ She asked herself and hoped the Force inside her could answer.

The words of Maz Kanata came to her again: "The belonging you seek is not behind you; it is ahead."

Yes, she knew she belonged with Ben...probably had known all along, but why could she not let go and just be with him? Why was she still afraid?

"Whomever you're waiting for on Jakku...they're never coming back...but there's someone who still could."

_Ben…_

Rey suddenly slowed, sliding her feet deep into the forest moss and stopped. A vision overtook her, though it was not one of the future. It was more like flashes of the past seen through her emotions. The pain she felt being abandoned on Jakku. Growing up alone and frightened with no parental love or guidance. The hard life she had as a scavenger. The odd connection she felt with another lonely soul that mirrored her own. Finding something like family in the Resistance. Her faith in Ben's goodness and then losing him to the darkness. The grief after losing Han, Luke, and Leia - it was like losing her parents again. The fear of the darkness within her and learning her true lineage. Ben asking her to join him and her knowing she couldn't. It tore her apart. The overwhelming comfort she felt when Ben came for her on Exegol. She had felt like she finally belonged to someone. It was all too much.

She began to cry. Grabbing her knees, she buckled, letting the sobs overtake her.

There it was - her answer. She had searched for a family, to belong to someone, to have somebody come back for her, for so long. When someone finally did come for her, she had no idea what to do. No one had ever taken care of her. She had become independent because she had to be. She had been alone because she had nobody. It was overwhelming to know someone wanted her. She had almost convinced herself that she was unworthy of such a thing. But being completely honest with herself, she was terrified to let someone in, to become intimate with someone. Her entire life had consisted of her putting up walls just to survive.

Rey was a warrior, a scavenger, and a Jedi. She didn't need anyone to survive.

But to live, that was a different story. There was only one she needed to live. And he needed her, too. She could feel that. They weren't just family; they were soulmates - two halves of a whole.

It was time to let go and dive in. Her past did not define her. The many nights she spent alone and terrified were over. What what it that Ben had said so long ago?

"Let the past die. Kill it if you have to."

She hadn't understood it then, but she did now. Some things were worth remembering, but it was time to move on from so much that had previously defined her.

The past was over for Ben, too. This was a new journey for both of them and the Jedi.

Rey wiped her tears and took a step forward, toward the future, and ran to Ben Solo.

He could sense her as she neared him. Her spirit was bright and alive, not at all downtrodden and tired like she had been at lunch. This lifted his spirit as well. What could have changed between there and here?

Breathless, she entered the small clearing and found him seated on the ground, just waiting for her.

Ben's hair was tossed about in a delightful mess. The sun shone through the trees and landed on his face, shining on his many freckles. She had seen that expression before - longing and uncertainty. She could feel the emotions rolling off of him in waves.

Not surprisingly, once again, the same fear gripped her and kept her from running right into his arms. Her own uncertainty and insecurity bound her like shackles. Ashamed, she felt the joy she had found only a moment ago fade into her low self esteem.

Ben's eyes never left hers as she came and sat in front of him, knee to knee.

"Rey," Ben said her name so calmly. "Close your eyes."

She did as he said, feeling the tension in her shoulders becoming tighter. Although her eyes were closed, she could feel him move, though he was quieter than a leaf falling to the ground. He was behind her now. They were connected, like a string or a compass, creating a circle while still being connected somehow.

Ben's large hands pressed down on her shoulders. Naturally, she tensed before exhaling and relaxing her tired muscles.

A finger ran down the back of her neck, sending chills down her spine.

"What do you feel?"

Rey's brow furrowed. She was trying to relax and let go of this fear of intimacy and also her anger; but honestly, she simply felt anxious.

"Anxiety," she answered, completely honest.

Ben eased back in front of her and sat down, watching the tiny movements in her facial features. So many emotions crossed over her in an instant. Concentration, concern, worry, shame.

"I feel it, too," he said, his deep voice low. "What do you feel from me?"

A miniscule smile formed at the corner of her mouth, remembering that esoteric interrogation from a long time ago. Then, her features twisted back into serious contemplation.

"Concern...longing...and...relief?" Obviously, Rey didn't understand these emotions.

"Yes," he agreed, and she opened her eyes.

"What are you relieved about?" Being blunt was not an issue for her.

He looked away, not wanting to admit it.

"I'm relieved that you're here...with me." Ben's voice was almost flat.

Surprisingly, she grabbed his hand off his knee, sending a current through his arm.

"Of course I'm here with you," she beamed with a motherly smile, staring brightly into his brown eyes.

Now, he was confused. She had been honest with him, perhaps he should be honest with her.

They were so close, but he leaned in closer. Both pairs of their eyes searched the others', back and forth. He took her jaw in his left hand, like he had on Exegol, rubbing his thumb over her cheek. She did not flinch or strain from his touch. Ben had to remind himself that Rey was so much like him - abused and abandoned since childhood. Grief presented itself in a myriad of ways. He had always acted out in rage, whereas she acted out in kindness. He could practically see her mind. She was terrified to let go and open up to him. He understood that, but they could not wait forever. However, at this moment, her expression was clear, open, and inviting.

Rey's eyes looked exceptionally green out here in the forest as they darted between his deep ones and his full lips.

Ben's eyes tightened. She wanted this, too. He could feel it; he could see it. Why was she holding back?

"Let go," he whispered. _Let go,_ he pleaded with his mind. _Let go of it all - the past, the Resistance, insecurity, shame, everything_.

"Let go, Rey, please…"

She blinked, closing her eyes. Her mental release was felt instantaneously by both of them. At this moment, she was simply Rey, simply herself, and he was simply Ben - two halves of the same soul, bound by the Force itself.

Then, he kissed her. Their bodies drew together on their own accord, like magnets. His other hand found her waist and hers found the thick waves at the back of his neck. Breathless, their lips only broke apart to rearrange and meet a different way. It lasted forever but not nearly long enough.

When their lips finally broke apart out of necessity, their bodies relaxed, but neither let go of the other. Each was sure the other felt the same thing - belonging and balance, a rightness that could be found nowhere else besides in each other.

Together, they laughed, much like they had before on that dreadful planet of Exegol, except this time there was no pain or suffering. There was only joy, hope, and assurance.

"Why was I afraid?" Rey managed to ask.

Ben smiled and shook his head. "It doesn't matter. You don't have to explain."

"Let the past die," she echoed with a coy smile.

He snorted a chuckle. "Not exactly what I meant, but yes."

Sighing, she replied, "I have to go back to the next meeting soon."

Ben's grip on her waist tightened until their chests touched again, his eyes narrow. "Are you sure about that?" Then, he kissed her again, barely touching her lips with his.

"Suddenly, I'm not so sure." Rolling her eyes slightly, she pushed him down onto his back. Much to Ben's surprise, she pulled herself on top of him, her hands at his head and her knees squeezing his hips.

He knew his face must have betrayed him, because she laughed brightly.

"Don't look so panicked, Master Solo." Rey kissed him as lightly as he had kissed her only a moment ago. "I just wanted to have the high ground, since you have a slight vertical advantage."

"Slight?"

She giggled. "Okay, maybe more than slight."

Ben's expression softened, and he hoped it would be alright to do what he was about to do. His hands slid from her waist down to her hips, not far but far enough to make a difference. Only minimal panic crossed her face.

"Rey...I -"

A loud beep broke through their intimate moment together. BB-8 unexpectedly rolled up, almost flipping himself over a tree root, beeping hysterically.

"Something's happened," Rey explained, pulling herself off of him without much grace at all.

Only partially injured from her quick movements, Ben stood as well, listening to BB-8's blips and bleeps.

"We have to go," she said darkly, and took off through the woods, with BB-8 hot on her heels.

Sighing, Ben followed her, cursing under his breath, and wondering silently why he was only allowed a small portion of happiness in this miserable galaxy.

*****Thank you for reading! I'll be back soon with more of Poe and Finn, but not too much...can't take the spotlight away from sweet little Reylo. #bensolodeservedbetter #reyloforever **


	7. Chapter 7

*****So sorry for the delay in this chapter. I really struggled with this one and deciding a more concrete, overall storyline. Not as much Reylo content in this one, but I've got so much planned for those two! This chapter serves more as a set up chapter for what's to come. Bear with me :). Once again, thank y'all so much for reading my story!*****

**Disclaimer: I own no rights to Star Wars, unfortunately. Maybe if I did, we would all be happier. **

"Rey!" Ben Solo called ahead to her. He was gaining on her, but she was fast. Luckily, his stride matched two of her own. "What's wrong?"

"Someone is injured! BB-8 didn't see who. Finn told him to get us. They need our help!" she hollered back to him, running out of breath.

Time seemed to slow down the faster they ran, and Ben could feel anxiety and worry creeping back into Rey's spirit, especially since they didn't know who was injured or how. The sea of green seemed never-ending as their muscles began to tire.

Once they hit the outskirts of camp, time began to move extremely fast instead of slow. Near the bath houses, everyone in the Resistance was gathered around whoever was injured, pushing, shoving, and trying to see. Some barked orders of what to do for the person. Medic kits were being thrown across the group. Tables were turned over, technology falling to the ground as people tried to get through. C-3PO and Chewbacca sounded like they were auditioning for a competition on who could make the most noise. It was mass chaos.

"Let us through!" screeched Rey, panicked and pushing the outer rim of people out of her way. Everyone suddenly began to back away, staring at the two Force users with wide, unsure eyes.

At the center of the mass was a glazed Poe Dameron, laying on the ground, eyes wandering but not seeing. He was practically thrashing, obviously in unbearable pain. Finn was next to him on one side, trying to hold him down, and a trained medic woman was on the other. She held a cloth to his abdomen, trying to calm herself more than Poe by the looks of it - both of their faces appeared grim and taut. When the medic pulled her hand away, a deep hole in his stomach was revealed, cauterized on the edges but beginning to bleed in the center. It looked quite deep.

"What happened?" Rey asked Finn, anger on the tip of her tongue, as she knelt down in front of Poe. BB-8 rolled up beside her, knocking one of Ben's feet out of the way, and began beeping wildly at the sight of his master.

Poe waved at BB-8, uncertain of his whereabouts and reacting to the beeping. "Hey, buddy…," he trailed off.

Finn shook his head and kept his voice low. "Nobody knows. He was going to the bathroom, just over there. When he didn't come back, we went looking for him and found him here."

"Did a blaster malfunction?"

"He wasn't carrying one," Finn answered, tight lipped, hoping Rey caught his meaning.

Ben did, and it wasn't good. Either someone had infiltrated the camp with intent to harm, or one of their own had done this. He squatted down beside Rey, a hand on her shoulder. "We need to heal him soon." Poe had quietened, his eyes beginning to close.

"Yes," she agreed, stretching her hand out over the oozing sight on his stomach. "I can do it. Poe, stay with me, okay?" He nodded once before his head doddled to the side and stayed there.

"Together," countered Ben, stretching his hand out as well. "Neither one of us needs to be weak."

She gave him a look of agitation, but allowed him to help as well. With their joint effort, the wound began to clot until it healed into a gruesome scar. As Ben watched, he realized Poe's scar resembled the one he had...from being stabbed by Rey with that old lightsaber, though Poe's was not as large. Since his injury was most likely done by a blaster, he would hopefully recover quickly.

The medic immediately stood up as soon as Poe was healed, backing away from Rey and Ben. "How did you do that?"

"Just a little life Force transfer," said Rey, rubbing her now slightly sore hand. Ben did not miss the odd look on the woman's face, nor the other odd expressions on the Resistance members surrounding them, though that quickly changed to joy. Many asked if their general was truly alright. Poe mumbled a quick thank you to them before falling into a deep, restful sleep.

"He'll be okay," Finn told BB-8 before assuring everyone that Poe would be alright, and to back off, give him some space, and prepare dinner for the group.

Rey stood to the side, studying Poe at an angle with her arms crossed. It just didn't make sense. She had quickly reached the same conclusion Finn had, and either way the chips fell, it was bad for the Resistance.

After the group had dispersed, she, Ben, and Finn reconvened.

"We need to move him to his tent," Finn suggested, leaning over to get his shoulders.

Ben put up a hand. "I've got this," he sighed and proceeded to use the Force to lift and move Poe. Rey and Finn followed along behind.

"What do you think happened?" Rey asked.

Finn shrugged, inhaling deeply. "I'm not sure exactly, but I know it's bad. Either we have unwanted visitors or someone has turned on us. We don't have time for this. We were supposed to go to the Core planets tomorrow to negotiate trade and a slew of other things. I can't do this alone."

"Did anyone besides the Council know about the plan to go to the Core planets?"

Finn shook his head. "Not unless you…" His eyes looked up to the back of Ben's head.

"No, I didn't...and besides...he was with me."

"Oh," was all Finn said in reply.

There was still tension there, Rey could feel it, and thankfully Ben was a couple yards ahead and not interfering in their conversation.

"I'm sorry for earlier," she finally apologized. "I didn't mean to get so angry with you. I was angry with myself."

Finn shrugged it off. "It's fine. I'm fine."

Rey eyed him, suspicious. "I don't think you are."

"Honestly, I'm just worried ...about you."

"Me? Why?"

"Because...," Finn beat around the bush, not wanting to say anything too criminalizing since Ben was just up ahead.

"Because of Ben?" Rey surprisedly surmised.

Finn glanced around the corner. Ben and Poe had just passed the first row of tents, giving Finn only a moment alone with Rey.

He grasped her elbow and looked her straight in her bright, hazel eyes. "Look, I just want you to be careful. I'm your friend. I care about you, okay?"

Confused, Rey only blinked. "I get it, Finn, but there are things you don't understand."

"You mean the doo-ad thing? Yeah, no, I don't get that. But I've been around him my whole life. You haven't. Just don't be stupid, okay?"

Pulling away, Rey breathed deeply, trying to dispense the anger she felt rising once again. "I'm _not_ stupid." She stomped away but decided to turn back around for one more statement. "And it's _dyad_."

Leaving Finn alone outside, she entered Poe's tent to help get him situated.

"Everything okay?" Ben slowly asked while setting Poe down onto his cot.

"No...I mean, yes, it's fine," snapped Rey, grabbing blankets to throw over Poe. "Is he still breathing okay?" Her voice was practically ice.

Ben stared at her with a confused expression; he didn't know whether to ask her to divulge what was bothering her or to do what she said. Deciding on the latter due to the severity of her facial expression, he held a finger under Poe's nose. He was practically snoring.

"Fine," he replied, watching her as she began to prop a pillow under his neck and lay a blanket over him with sharp, jerky motions.

"Good," she nodded, habitually straightening up Poe's tent that was no cleaner than hers. "That's good."

Ben felt for her, though he had never had these friends to cause such emotional disturbance in his life. Still, he felt what she felt, and wanted to help.

"Rey," he moved to her, placing a hand around her upper arm to stop her organized tornado. "Stop for a minute and -"

She jerked away from him, giving him a trying look before throwing whatever she was folding in the floor and placing a hand on her forehead. She could feel the sting of rejection rolling off of him and instantly felt guilty for it.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean - "

"It's...okay," Ben began, but she cut him off.

"It's not. I had no right to -" Her voice was less icy and more chopped, painful.

He tentatively squeezed her arm again. "You were angry. We can talk about whatever is making you angry later, but right now I need you to listen. Did you see the way everyone looked at us? For using the Force like that?"

Rey's glassy eyes blinked a couple of times before she shrugged. "They looked happy to me."

"Before that. They looked scared. Scared of us. Scared of the Force. And if there's someone here that's turned against Poe, they could turn against us."

She hadn't thought of that. "We don't know that it was a traitor. It could have been a spy, a bounty hunter, a number of things."

"I don't know," Ben shook his head, glancing at Poe. "But we need to find out what happened and why."

They heard a cough outside right before Finn walked in the tent. "I'll, uh, keep watch. He shouldn't be left alone in case this was a targeted attack. I'm sure you two have things to do. And no meeting tonight. We'll discuss our plans in the morning. Get Rose to come relieve me in an hour, will you?" He carefully avoided eye contact with both of them.

"Yeah, sure," Rey cooly agreed and breezed past Finn and out of the tent without another word.

Ben followed close behind, but Finn stuck a foot out in front of his path.

It was an awkward moment. Ben was almost half a foot taller than his ex-subordinate and much more powerful. He could've easily pushed right on past, but he was curious to see what FN-2187 had to say.

Finn seemed to realize this but said what he wanted to say anyway. Ben had to admire his audacity, however misplaced it was.

"Don't you dare hurt her. Do you understand me?" the Resistance general sharply whispered.

Ben chuckled before cementing his face into a cold mask. "And I hope you understand that you will be the one that is hurt if you come between us again."

Finn stepped back, partially afraid and partially concerned, and let Ben Solo exit.

Across the way, Ben found Rey telling Rose the message from Finn. Lucky for him, no more meetings tonight. Sure, there was a bit of dread looming over them until they figured out what happened, but perhaps he and Rey could pick up where they left off earlier this afternoon. He wanted him with her all night, safe from any harm that could come their way. The sun was setting between the trees; the day had melted into a quiet, peaceful evening after all the commotion. Almost everyone was busy settling down for the day. Kitchen workers called out orders to one another as they prepared dinner. Others prepared the table or brought the clean laundry out to sort. It was as if nothing unsettling had happened at all.

When Rey turned toward him, the fiery sky behind her shadowed her into a perfect, dark silhouette. The loose hairs around her face flew around like wild tongues of fire. His mother's dress flowed behind her, blowing with the cool evening wind. Soon, she was near him, and half of Ben's soul sauntered up to him and purposefully wrapped her arms around his middle, laying her head on his chest.

His arms naturally formed around her, lying comfortably at her waist. Resting his chin on top of her head, Ben soon relaxed into her embrace. He hadn't held her like this since the first day they arrived here.

She finally pulled away, gently pulling her hands down to hold both of his and met his gaze. "We need to figure out what's going on here, like you said. And we need to make our plans for the new Order so I can prepare Finn and Poe for our leave. I had really hoped they would get something set in stone with more systems before that time came, though."

Ben let go of one of her hands to tuck her wild flyaways behind her ear. "That's not your problem."

She sighed. "I know, but I feel like it is as part of the council. Look, I'll figure out what's going on at the meeting in the morning and we'll go from there. In the meantime, we'll keep a lookout for anything suspicious. I'm just so glad we could save Poe."

Someone made a dinner call, and Rey pulled at his hand to come sit and eat. Portions were handed out this time, not self serve, Ben noticed. He wished Rey would tell him more about their council meetings, then again, he really didn't care.

One day, they would have a new Jedi Order and rule it their way. Until then, he would have to make do with whatever portions he was allowed and steal more portions of time with his Rey. Like tonight for example, he did not plan for her to sleep alone.

*****Hope you enjoyed! Lots going on here! Just out of curiosity, do you ship Finn/Poe or Finn/Rose? I'm almost decided...but always looking for feedback :). Don't forget to R&R, and I'll be back soon with the next chapter. **


	8. Chapter 8

*****Thank y'all SO much! I can't believe we've reached 100 followers! Like what! Blows my mind. I can't believe y'all like reading my story. I enjoy writing it and hope you keep enjoying reading it! This chapter is ALL REYLO. Thank the heavens. Enjoy!*****

**Disclaimer: I own no rights to Star Wars, unfortunately. Maybe if I did, we would all be happier. **

Rey Palpatine was too good, Ben had decided. She was nothing like her surname at all. In fact, she was much too giving. Currently, she was on her way back from a quick perimeter run. Just a few minutes ago, she was helping clean up dinner with the kitchen crew and hand out clean laundry. And first thing in the morning, she would have to go to a council meeting and help the Resistance work out whatever bleak plan they had cooked up over the last week.

Despite her goodness, Ben had felt her anger often. Sure, it took some effort to get her worked up, but she had certain nerves that struck a chord in her fiery spirit. He had to teach her how to reign that anger in and use it. Her anger caused her to come undone, unbalanced, and unfocused. But if she knew how to wield it, she would become practically unstoppable.

She had showed him the Light side, and he needed to show her the Dark. Balance was the key to becoming more powerful in the Force. Where she used to be only Light, and he used to be only Dark, they both needed to become Gray.

This was why they needed to leave this place and search Ahch-To for more information. The Jedi had fallen because they had become so blind to the Dark Side that they were unable to notice the powerful Darth Sidious as he slithered in their back door. He and Rey could not be that blind. Although they were the only Force users powerful enough to be known at the time, others would rise soon enough. Whether they would be Light or Dark, he didn't know, but he knew he and Rey must learn both sides of the Force to keep everything in check.

With unfocused eyes, Ben sat on a stump near the bath houses, deep in thought, since he was not invited to run the perimeter search. He almost didn't notice Rey walk up to him, holding a basket of clean laundry.

"I think I'm going to lie down. I might be called to keep watch over Poe, so I need to rest while I can," she said matter-of-factly. Bags were beginning to develop under her eyes, so he knew she was exhausted.

"You don't need to be alone," Ben immediately countered. "We still don't know who did this. Did you find anything?"

Rey chewed her bottom lip. "No, nothing, but it's dark. Another party will search tomorrow morning. They'll probably ask you to help."

Ben stood, crossing his arms. "I doubt that. No one asks me to do anything."

She smiled softly at him, an odd emotion crossing her face. What was that? _PIty?_ "Just go with them," she suggested. "They won't bite."

He almost chuckled but refrained. "No, they just think I do."

Rey bit her lip again, unsure of what to say and knowing he was most likely correct in his assumption. She hadn't wanted to admit it, but most of the Resistance had been leery of Ben Solo - for good reason, but still. She wanted it to be different but was unsure of how to change that.

He finally broke the silence. "Look, I don't care to make friends. You're all I care about. You need to finish whatever you're doing with the council tomorrow and then we can move on to Ahch-To and take care of our own business." The odd look on her face sent a wave of worry over him. "Right?" he asked, unsure.

She dropped her now red bottom lip and nodded. "Right, yes."

Ben tried not to panic at the uncertainty in her visage.

"Okay, um, I'm headed to bed. Here's your clothes." She handed him a simple, all black outfit - the one he used to wear under his Kylo Ren cloak, the one he showed up here wearing. He had been given a set of clothes he was currently wearing from a pile of hand-me-downs. Otherwise, the outfit she handed him now was all he had. Someone had at least tried to mend the many holes in the black sweater. He picked at a loose thread as she began to walk away.

Ben was so distraught and so insecure that he almost let her leave.

"Rey, wait," he began much too forcefully. She immediately turned around, curiosity in her eyes.

He breathed a rickety breath. He had never tried to do anything of this sort before.

"I don't want you to go alone."

She only chuckled. "I'm not afraid of the dark, Ben."

_I am_, he thought sinisterly, remembering the voices that used to plague him in the night.

"It's dangerous...and I...I don't want you to be alone all night."

She raised a brow, obviously not understanding. "I'll be fine."

"You don't know that," he replied darkly, walking towards her. "Please, Rey. Please...just stay with me tonight."

Like he had noticed before, Rey was much too good. Her expression immediately changed to one of sympathy and understanding. She was back in front of him in an instant, her hands on top of his that held onto that old shirt.

Her eyes searched his, though he was uncertain what for.

"My tent's bigger," she mentioned before turning and heading for the small tent village that occupied the western side of the camp.

A sensation Ben had never felt before tickled down his spine. He followed behind her, almost nervous, and hoped Finn had found other lookouts for the rest of the evening.

He had been in Rey's tent a number of times. That was nothing new, but an electrical hum in the small atmosphere hung between them. It made them both awkward and unsure of what was appropriate and what wasn't.

"Um," Rey began, throwing her laundry in the corner, "I don't have an extra cot. You might want to go get yours."

Ben wanted to pop back with "_I know you don't_," but she was right. He barely fit on one of these standard cots as is. There was no way they could fit on one together, unless…

Shaking his head to clear his mind, Ben practically ran across the tent campus and quickly folded his much too small cot to bring back with him. He tried to slow his pace down, especially with the cot in tow. He didn't want to attract any attention that might embarrass Rey. Almost everyone had bedded down for the evening, except for one or two stragglers that conversed as slowly as they walked, but they paid him no mind. He was back to Rey's tent before he knew it.

Unfortunately, Jannah and Rose stood outside both of their tents, which were on the other side of Rey's, respectively. They couldn't help but notice the tall, dark man as he neared them with a very obvious item in his arms.

The two girls didn't say a word, instead they immediately became silent and stared at him. He gave them a polite, awkward nod before ducking in Rey's tent to avoid any kind of small talk with them.

She had already changed back into her normal white pants and cream top, though not completely dressed. Her belts, hood, and overlay were still piled in the floor. Almost too expressionless, she sat down on her cot and crossed her legs.

The tent was bigger than Ben's but not by much. He wasn't sure if he could unfold his own cot where it wouldn't be sitting on top of something.

"Oh, sorry," Rey hopped up, grabbing books and junk off the floor. It didn't help much, but it allowed Ben to set up the cot and leave about six inches of space between his and hers.

She sat back down on her cot, like before, and clasped her hands, almost as if she were waiting on him. Unbeknownst to him, she considered exactly how _large_ of a person he actually was. Of course, he was tall, obviously, but in the cramped space she realized just how _tall._. He could only stand straight up in the center of the tent. And although he didn't have an ounce of fat on him, his demeanor gave him an even larger presence.

Ben sat down on his cot, with his back to her, and began to undress. He pulled his boots and socks off, hoping there was no stench and set them in the corner. Skeptical of the outcome, he jerked his dark gray top off and tossed it over his boots. He reminded himself that he always slept minimally clothed. No need to be nervous. She had seen him shirtless before. He almost smiled when he noticed, once _again,_ that there was no scar trailing down his face to his right collarbone.

As he stuffed his lightsaber into his left boot, he felt almost tangible tension in the invisible string that held him and Rey together. Then, he heard her take a deep breath.

"Ben, I need to tell you something."

He froze, his entire body becoming immobile. Between the tension, the shaking in her voice, and the uncertainty in her tone, he was terrified of what would come next.

"Can you turn around please?" she asked, emotion in her voice. Was she _crying?_

Ben slowly turned, crossing his legs over his cot like she had done. She wiped her tears away quickly, he noticed. She didn't want him to see them.

His heart had never pounded this hard. Why was she doing this to him?

It would be so easy to explode right now. If he were Kylo Ren, he would explode everywhere. Everything in his vicinity would be reduced to trash. Then, he would feel better but only for a moment. Whatever pain he was feeling would eventually come back.

But he was not Kylo Ren. He was Ben Solo. And this was his soulmate sitting in front of him - the only person in the galaxy that could understand him. He wondered vaguely if he was the only person that could understand her, too.

"I'm sorry. I don't know why I'm crying," she laughed sarcastically. "I, um, I don't know how to say this...or do this...I guess that's what I'm trying to say."

Ben only blinked, utterly dumbfounded at the female creature in front of him. Perhaps he was wrong, and even he couldn't understand her.

"I'm sorry, what?" he finally managed to ask, searching her face.

Her eyes blinked away but were trying not to trail down to his bare chest. She was so naive, nervous, and innocent when it came to intimacy. He could see that and feel that. He wasn't so different himself. But, she needed to tell him about her revelation from earlier. She needed to tell him her thoughts and feelings, since their time together this afternoon had gotten cut abruptly short.

"You're so important to me, Ben. I've wanted a family for so long, my whole life, but...I'm trying to tell you...that...that I don't know how to do this," Rey shrugged, still not looking him in the eye. "I don't know how to have a relationship. I don't know how to do any of it, and I'm sorry. I'm not scared. I'm not worried. I just don't know _how_."

Now, it was his turn to feel sympathetic and understanding. He held out a hand and she took it, her small one practically disappearing as his fingers wrapped around it.

"I don't either," he answered honestly. "But I don't think there's a right or wrong way. I think it's about how you feel. What do you feel right now?"

She sniffed and rubbed her eyes with her other hand. "Besides the tension?"

"Let go of the tension. There's no need. You can be honest with me."

Rey nodded and tried to relax, almost embarrassed he had to tell her to _let go_ yet again. He squeezed her hand to encourage her.

"What do you feel?" he asked again, giving her time to think and feel.

"Belonging," she answered confidently, meeting his gaze with a soft smile.

He smiled back. "Me, too. You're not alone, remember?"

"Neither are you," she echoed, squeezing his hand back. "You know I've always been alone, always searching for answers. Even in the Resistance, I felt alone, besides with your mother. I was the only Force user. No one understood me or what I was doing. Finn tried, but he was gifted in other areas. Now, I feel like I've finally moved beyond my past. I'm not the same person anymore. I know what happened to my parents. I know I'm not alone. I have answers, finally, to all my questions. It almost seems too simple to just be _happy_, especially with the shape the Resistance is in now."

Ben nodded, completely understanding what she was saying. "I feel the same, well, almost. I feel like we deserve happiness. All my life, I've been pushed away, labeled as dangerous. I thought everyone I loved was foolish. When I started hearing voices in my head, they helped me. And I was stupid enough to think Snoke actually cared about me in some dark, padawan way. Knowing now that it was Sidious the entire time, manipulating me, using me, deceiving me, turning me against my family...I'm the one that feels foolish."

Naturally, they leaned toward each other, their knees touching.

"You were abused," Rey reached up and ran her fingers through his hair before forming her hand around his face. "And I was abandoned. But it's over now."

He nodded, taking in the warmth of her hand on his face. "And we're not alone. We're together."

"Together," she agreed, pulling him to her and kissing him soundly.

In that moment, the feeling of belonging was even more overwhelming than it had been earlier that day. Both of them had desperately searched for a place to belong their entire lives. Now, they had finally found it; the search was over. Despite the grim, outside circumstances, nothing mattered but them at this moment. They were drowning in each other, engulfed in a bond that was solid and sure.

Ben wound his hands around her waist and up her back, pulling her onto her knees and towards his bare chest. She was eye to eye with him this way. One of Rey's hands held his face securely to hers, while the other grabbed his shoulder, closing any distance between them. Once again, they were drawn to each other like magnets.

Pulling away for air, Rey closed her eyes as Ben's lips found her neck. She had never felt anything like this before. It was almost too much.

He kissed her skin gently before looking up to meet her gaze. Her eyes held so much love and adoration for him. No one had ever looked at him like that, not this kind of love.

Guiding her with his hands on her waist, he sat her back down, pulling her away. Confusion blurred her face for a split second.

His hands left her waist and found her cheeks instead. Her hazel eyes darted back and forth between his, waiting patiently and hopefully for what he was about to say.

"Rey...we are a dyad, soulmates, two that are one. The Force brought us together despite everything. I will never leave you or abandon you. And I love you with all that I am." His voice was barely above a whisper but ardent and strong. Tears began to sting his eyes.

A tear ran down Rey's face, mingling with Ben's fingers. "Ben Solo, I knew you before I met you. I've always believed in you and the goodness within you. I won't push you away. I won't deceive you. I love you...I love you, too."

Ben's entire body relaxed with an exhausted yet joyful sigh, hearing Rey's words. All of the tension was gone, replaced with inexplicable happiness.

She moved before he could, climbing on top of him, straddling him to sit in his lap. All she wanted was to be as close to him as possible, to hold him tightly against her and for him to do the same. Her hands wound around his neck, one on his back, one buried in his dark hair. His fell back around her waist, holding her to him with his chin on her shoulder - reminiscent of her death on Exegol, except this time, she was very much alive in his arms.

They sat like this for what seemed like forever, with no space between them, and no uncertainty in their relationship. The tears kept flowing but neither could let go of the other. Every sensation felt flawlessly _right_ and perfect. Come what may, they were connected in all planes of existence, and that would never change.

When they finally pulled apart, breaking the embarrassing, salty glue from the tears that flowed and dried between their connected skin, they both pushed messy hair out of the other's face.

"You need to sleep," Ben finally said, wiping the leftover trail of tears off her face.

She nodded, sniffling ungracefully. "I'm glad you're here."

He softly smiled, revelling in the fact that she wanted him as much as he wanted her.

With a little more grace than this afternoon, she wiggled off of him and onto her cot, wiping her nose and eyes, before laying down on her side, facing him.

He laid down as well, facing her. He had to fold his knees to keep his entire body on the standard cot. Forgetting his blanket, he used the Force to pull it over his lower body, leaving his chest and arms free in the humid climate.

Rey pulled her blanket up to her chin but kicked her feet out, the exact opposite of him.

Ben chuckled at her, meeting her eyes again, and suddenly not wanting to close his own.

She blinked back at him, contentment in her eyes. Then, she reached out a hand and used the Force to close the small space between their cots.

Only inches apart, Rey yawned sleepily. "Good night, Ben."

He yawned back, contagious. "Night, Rey."

"I love you," she answered, smiling brightly in the dark.

He smiled back. "I love you, too."

*****EEEE! I LOVE IT! I hope you enjoyed! Also, can we talk about Ben's Good Boy Sweater making an appearance? I support Good Boy Sweater 100%. **

**If you were wondering what Rey's "I knew you before I met you" meant, it's referring to TFA novelization where Rey realizes she has seen Kylo Ren before in a dream. There's so much that's in the novels that's left out of the movies, unfortunately. Like sassy Kylo Ren, for example. **

**The more I read about TROS reshoots and cuts, the more depressed I am. We were robbed, friends. Completely robbed. Here's to hoping the cut Kylo/Ben scenes make it into the novelization or deleted scenes. **

**I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Thank y'all, again! See you soon. :) *****


	9. Chapter 9

*****I'm finally back, friends! Sorry! This chapter was a bit difficult for me for some reason. Thank y'all again for the reviews, follows, and favorites! I appreciate it SO VERY MUCH. I have a big, overarching storyline prepared, and I'm in it for the long haul. Don't expect this story to end anytime soon! Hope you enjoy and keep checking back in as the story progresses. :) *****

**Disclaimer: I own no rights to Star Wars, unfortunately. Maybe if I did, we would all be happier. **

Everything was white.

The floor, the walls, the ceiling, the lights, everything - an almost sterile white.

Fear was the first, most natural emotion he felt, but it soon faded. He knew this place. To the corridor on the right, was an expansive, white bathroom. To the left, was a sleeping chamber with white, satin sheets. The space was open, clean, and familiar. But something was off. In the middle of the white sea, was a spot of black.

Directly behind him, was the only black object in the space - a glossy, black pedestal with a melted, disfigured helmet perched on the top. Part of him wanted to turn and look at it; it gave him comfort. Part of him wanted to never look upon that helmet again. Eventually, he did turn around because the helmet had begun to call him, preying on his weakness. He approached it apprehensively, afraid to hear the voices but also afraid not to.

The old helmet was practically vibrating. A high pitch ringing caused his ears to hurt.

"_You're a failure, Kylo Ren_," the voice echoed in his head over and over. "_Failure. Failure_."

Suddenly, his vision and breathing were impaired, changed. He began to panic but was soon calmed by familiarity yet again. His old helmet was on, but he felt powerful, not frightened. Gloved hands gripped into fists. Rage had set in, and he was angry. Angry at the voices, angry at his decisions, angry at every person who had ever steered him wrong.

"_You're no Vader. You're just a child in a mask," _mocked the evil voice in his mind.

That was it. He could take no more. Looking down at his gloved fist, he found his poorly made lightsaber in his grip. It eagerly ignited, and the white room was soon corrupted with streaks of red. The voice continued to laugh as the rage poured out of him.

When his destruction turned to the dark pedestal and helmet, another memory interrupted this vision.

A clash of red and blue across space and time. His grandfather's helmet at his feet.

Everything hurt as two distinct parts of his life came crashing together, mingled in a disastrous mess. Nothing made sense in his warped mind, but one name came to him.

_The girl...Rey._

Shame enveloped him, and he dropped the red saber. Falling to his knees in the middle of all the brokenness, he gazed down at the macabre helmet, a symbol of evil for decades. Like he had done hundreds of times, he took his own mask off and set it down beside his grandfather's.

Different styles for different eras, but the same power emanated from both dark helmets. They were symbols of the darkness and strength of the Sith. They were also symbols of his family's legacy.

He began to cry. He never wanted this - so much death, destruction, and despair. He had been just a boy, trying to find his place in the galaxy and trying to understand the power he had been born with. He was much like his grandfather in that aspect.

Would his grandfather be proud of him? Would the powerful Lord Vader think Kylo Ren was worthy of his legacy? After all, he had not finished what his grandfather had started. He had broken his promise.

Now, he was shaking. Not only had he failed his parents, his uncle, and his master. He had also failed his grandfather in every way possible.

"I'm sorry," he whispered to the helmet. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry."

"_Don't apologize for finding yourself, Ben Solo_," a voice called to him. A different voice than he had ever heard before.

Too exhausted to look for the unfamiliar voice, another voice broke his concentration. It was a familiar, comforting voice - one that he longed to hear every chance he could.

"_Ben! Ben, wake up!"_

White, black, and red became a blur as he was pulled from this terrible dream.

He awoke breathless and sweaty with Rey's face only inches above his own.

"Are you okay?" she asked, her eyes wide. Her hands were on his shoulders. Apparently, she had been shaking him awake.

His head was spinning, but he was okay. He was here, on Ajan Kloss, with Rey. He was not on that Star Destroyer. He did not hear the voices of Palpatine and Snoke anymore. And he was not Kylo Ren; he was Ben Solo.

Rey sat down on her cot, giving him some space to breathe. Slowly, he sat up wearing only his underwear. He had forgotten that he had kicked his pants off during the night because it was stuffy in the humid tent. Right now, though, he didn't care. His hair was stuck to his neck from a cold sweat, and his chest had a sheen to it. A headache quickly set in, and he pulled his knees to his chest, setting his forehead on them.

"Ben, are you okay? Can you answer me, please?" Her tone was direct but concerned.

Ben nodded but refrained from meeting her gaze, ashamed of what he had seen in his dream, ashamed of who he used to be.

"You told me I could be honest with you," she continued, placing a hand on his shoulder. "You can be honest with me, too, Ben."

He tried to swallow the lump in his throat. He wanted to talk to her about this, about Kylo Ren and what all he had endured - how he constantly felt like a failure in the eyes of everyone he knew. She would listen and listen intently. He knew this. She was too good.

As he was gathering his jumbled, incohesive thoughts, their tent flew open and Finn appeared.

"Rey! We're waiting on y -" he stopped suddenly, taking in the sight before him - Ben's presence and lack of clothing, two cots pushed closely together, Rey's comforting hand on Ben's shoulder.

She didn't even check up. Her eyes stayed on Ben. "I'll be there in a minute," she replied to Finn. When he didn't immediately exit, she gave him a decisive look, and he quickly stepped out.

"Will you be okay if I leave?" Her question was serious and concerned.

He almost fell out then and there. No one had ever asked him that before. She was so pure and caring, and he must return the favor.

The sooner Rey took care of Resistance business, the sooner they could leave. The sooner she finished this meeting, the sooner they could leave. Then, they would have all the time in the world.

"I'll be fine. You go," he placed his hand over hers that sat on his shoulder. "Just a bad dream."

She smiled softly at him. "I've had my fair share of those."

He returned her smile and gently removed her hand from him, urging her to go on. "I'll see you later."

"Later," she agreed, before grabbing his chin and giving him a quick but deep kiss and heading out. "Don't forget the search party."

Dressing quickly, Ben practically revelled in the simple, domestic morning the two of them had shared. He wouldn't mind nightmares every night, if he could wake up to this every morning.

Rey hoped Finn had not shared specific information that she had hoped to keep privy, but at the same time, she realized she simply did not care. Things were different now. In fact, things had been different since the moment Kylo Ren had died, and her hope swelled. Everything had solidified when Ben Solo came for her on Exogol and saved her. After that, there was no going back. The rest was simply two, broken, damaged souls navigating a new world neither had experienced before. Nothing could be reversed now between her and Ben. What did it matter if people knew how serious they were about each other?

Apparently, it mattered quite a bit to Finn.

The last one to arrive at the council meeting, Rey sat down next to a Finn she hardly recognized. His face was twisted into a bewildering grimace, and he would hardly look at her.

"Morning. Sorry I'm late," she said to the council but mostly to Finn.

He eyes shot toward her, but his head never turned.

"Everyone, let's finish eating breakfast, and then we'll begin," Finn announced, as a basket of stale biscuits passed around the table.

Rey took a biscuit that more resembled a rock and passed the basket to her clearly upset best friend.

"Finn," she urged him when he wouldn't take it.

He grabbed the basket without looking at her. This was ridiculous, she decided, and kicked his calf with her boot.

"Hey!" he finally turned to her, looking annoyed.

"Hey!" she answered. "What's your problem?"

Finn huffed. "What do you mean 'what's my problem?'"

Rey's brows furrowed. "I mean the obvious problem that exists right now!"

Rolling his eyes, Finn left the basket in front of their faces for a moment to give them some sense of privacy.

"_What_ are you doing?" He asked, his voice a strained whisper.

"What?"

His eyes rolled even more. "With _Solo_."

"What business is it of yours?" she countered.

"I care about you."

"And I care about you, but I don't make you feel like an idiot for your personal life choices!"

"I don't have personal life choices. I'm a Resistance General."

Someone asked for the biscuits, and Finn passed them on, giving Rey a final, knowing look before beginning the meeting.

The meeting seemed to drag on for ages. Finn explained, in detail, the plan to visit Coruscant and the hope to draw on the tradition of keeping the galaxy's Capital on that planet - something the New Republic had not done. In doing so, Coruscant might lend more of a helping hand to the now 'Reformed Republic,' as Poe liked to call it. Having a central support system in Coruscant would propel the Reformed Republic forward much faster than any other system. Other systems would be more likely to support a Republic that held to the traditions of the Old Republic while correcting mistakes made by the Empire and the New Republic.

The information was ridiculously exhausting to Rey. She knew nothing of Coruscant besides it being one big, planet wide city. Having almost no knowledge of government, the plan sounded fairly solid to her. Others were concerned that Coruscant could not be trusted, since it had been the galactic capital under the Empire, although the citizens had revolted after Palpatine's supposed death. However, transmissions between the Resistance and the Coruscant government had sounded promising. Now, it was time for the governing bodies of both systems to meet.

"Poe and I will take a small tactical crew and head to Coruscant at noon. The meeting has already been arranged with Senator Arbo and Junior Senator Madmund. This meeting will determine how other worlds respond to the Resistance and the Reformed Republic. We have to remind the galaxy that things can be different. The First Order is gone. The New Republic is gone. There is opportunity for growth here. We must take it," Finn announced as the meeting came to a close.

"General Dameron is going with you?" Commander D'Acy asked worriedly.

"He's planning on it. Or he was this morning, when I saw him," replied Finn with an equally worried expression on his face.

"How is he?" Rey asked.

"Much better than he could have been," Finn answered, not looking at her. "Let's adjourn, and I will check on him. Flight crew needs to prepare the _Falcon_. You're dismissed."

Everyone gladly escaped the meeting, but Rey avidly followed Finn's retreating figure.

"You can't take the _Falcon_ to Coruscant!"

"It's the least offensive ship we have and the oldest. It's a representation of how humble we are," Finn answered, tight lipped.

"It still needs repairs. Besides, shouldn't you take something that isn't so 'humble?' Won't we seem needy and pathetic instead of strong and self sufficient? Not to mention, that ship isn't yours to take."

He stopped and turned on her then. "Since when do you care who uses the _Falcon_? Chewie sure doesn't mind. You're the one who stole it. Everything here belongs to everyone."

Anger was simmering under her skin. "That ship belongs to Ben Solo. It was his father's."

Apparently, anger had been building in Finn, too. "You mean the father he _murdered_? Now, it's his by right?"

A red haze colored her vision. Rey could feel the heat in her body as it concentrated into her hands. This time, however, she could somewhat control where her rage landed. Lightning shot out of her, through her fingers, and into the ground directly beneath her. She was so inexplicably _angry_ that it had to be manifested.

Finn took a step back from her, his mouth open, and an unreadable expression on his face.

As angry as she was, it almost helped to let it out through her unpredictable, Palpatine powers. Instead of blowing up even more, she crashed into a sea of unfathomable disappointment.

"Why don't you go ahead and say what you really want to say, Finn? _Why_ do you keep doing this? Why do you - ," she began to cry. "Why do you hate him so much?" She hated to ask these questions but had to know.

Finn pinched the bridge of his nose and wiped his face. "It all happened so fast, Rey. You came back from Exogol with him, and you're practically attached at the hip, when just a few days ago you two were fighting to the death. I don't understand it. I don't understand why he matters so much to you now."

"He's always mattered to me," she sobbed. "I couldn't tell anyone because I knew no one would understand. Not even you."

"You're damn right I don't understand!" He pointed a finger at her. "The Resistance is good for you. This family is good for you. I'm good for you. And I've always been there for you! For all of your history, your issues, and your Jedi crap! I've done nothing but fight for you. I could've left a long time ago, but you encouraged me to stay, to fight, to lead. But after all that, all you want is to train in the Jedi ways. And you are practically no help when I need you."

Rey swallowed, squeezing her hands into tight fists to gain control over her anger. "I've never doubted your goodness, Finn. I wish you wouldn't doubt mine. But I have my own path to follow, and it's not in politics. It's with Ben and rebuilding the Jedi Order. That is my path, my destiny."

"So you're going to abandon the Resistance? Just like that?" he scoffed. "You know, maybe if you took your eyes off of your 'destiny' for a minute, you would've realized I was Force sensitive a long time ago."

"What?" Her eyes were wide with shock.

"Yeah," Finn nodded, a sneer on his face. "I feel it, too, the Force. I may not be anywhere near as powerful as you two, but I can feel it."

"Finn, that's...that's amazing! Come with us! To train. We can show you the ways of the Force."

He laughed sardonically. "And just abandon the Resistance when we are trying to get the Reformed Republic onto its shaky feet? Yeah, unlike you, I can't do that."

She shook her head, confused by his hypocritical attacks and blocks. "I don't know what you want from me, Finn. You know I have to go. You know that is my path."

"Yeah, but it's not mine. My loyalty is here with Poe and the Resistance. The same Resistance that _Leia_ built."

_That was a cheap move_, Rey thought.

"Yes, and _Leia_ also trained _me _in the Force," she spat, silencing him.

Finn crossed his arms, unsure of what else to say. After their heated discussion, the silence felt extremely awkward.

Rey decided to break it. "Look, can we please both agree we have different paths to take in life? And move on? I'm tired of fighting, Finn. I don't want us to be disagreeing constantly."

He poked a loose tree root with his boot and sighed, releasing his own frustration. "I don't either, Rey. I just...I just feel so...I don't know."

"Lost?" Rey guessed, knowing the feeling.

Finn nodded bashfully. "I don't know what I'm doing. And then this thing with Poe...and I've been worried about you...and nothing has been easy with the Core planets...I just thought that after the war was won, everything would fall into place. Everything would be simple and good and we could all be happy, I guess?" He shook his head, biting his lip. "I'm sure that sounded foolishly naive."

Rey smiled. "Yes, but I think that's what the galaxy needs right now - happiness and innocence after all the darkness. They need encouragement, and you're the most encouraging person I know."

He smiled back a little. "Do you really think I can do this? That _we _can do this? Build something from nothing?"

"Absolutely."

Both of them finally felt at ease after letting their pent up anger out into the open. Finn opened his arms to embrace his best friend, and she happily obliged.

"Let's never do that again, okay?" Rey softly asked, while squeezing the first support system she ever had.

"Okay," he answered, holding her tight, never knowing when she might decide to leave him.

When they pulled apart, Rey's face was back to the sunshine state Finn had always counted on. He hoped his countenance didn't look too distraught. After all, he finally had a definite answer to his nagging suspicion that Rey was about to leave forever.

"Let me know when you arrive on Coruscant," she asked with a motherly expression. "And you can take the _Falcon_ if you think it's best."

Maybe all Rey needed was a bit of time away from Ben, and she would see why the Resistance needed her right now - why Finn needed her. The Jedi Order and Ben Solo could wait.

"We could use a lightsaber on this mission, Rey. Come with us."

Her expression was unreadable, almost stoic.

"That's an order," he patted her shoulder and walked on to Poe's tent, leaving her alone and undecided.

Across the camp, Ben Solo navigated through the dense forest around the camp's perimeter. What he found, surprised even him.

*****What do you think Ben found? Please let me know your theories! **

**Have y'all heard about the plan for the Disney Star Wars New Expanded Universe? Let me know your thoughts on that as well. :) **

**I'll be back soon with another chapter. Hope you're having as much fun as I am! *****


	10. Chapter 10

*****Thank y'all again for the R&R's and follows! This chapter is another one of those set up chapters with a certain big reveal/hint! Next chapter will be much longer as our friends head to Coruscant! *****

**Disclaimer: I own no rights to Star Wars, unfortunately. Maybe if I did, we would all be happier.**

Poe Dameron almost spilled a full glass of water, a bowl of porridge, and some kind of antibiotic pink drink that the medics had concocted all over himself because Finn burst into his tent hollering.

"Poe, it's time to go! Are you ready?"

With an infuriating glance at his friend, Poe gently set his very full bed tray onto the table beside him.

"You almost made me spill breakfast," he spat. "I love breakfast."

"We don't have time for breakfast. Grab something to take with you. We need to leave in less than an hour," Finn explained, equally as irritated at Poe's lack of enthusiasm.

"Okay, okay, did you wake up on the wrong side of our extremely soft and comfortable cots or something?" he asked, slowly flipping his legs over the side of his rickety and extremely _uncomfortable_ cot.

"No, yes, it doesn't matter. This meeting matters." Finn had begun to pace.

Poe watched as he walked back and forth. "You gonna talk about what's really bothering you or -?"

Finn kept walking. "No, it's nothing."

"It's Rey, isn't it? With Ben," Poe surmised easily.

"No."

"Yes, it is. Man, come on."

"No. I really don't care."

"You don't _care? Really?_" Poe almost laughed.

"Shut up, man, I'm serious. I only want her to be smart with him."

"Do you really think she wouldn't be? She can take care of herself."

"I know that!" Finn's voice rose, and he finally stopped pacing. "But she's going to leave with him, Poe. She's going to abandon us."

"We don't force people to be here, Finn," Poe reminded his friend. "They can leave if they want to. I'm surprised they've stayed this long, honestly."

Finn's face morphed into an uncertain expression. Had he missed signs that others had seen?

"Really?"

Poe stood up gingerly, making sure not to stretch his abdomen too quickly. "Yeah, really. They're the only two Force users left in the galaxy. I mean, doesn't it make sense for them to go and start their new mumbo jumbo temple or whatever?"

Finn didn't answer. He wasn't sure if he wanted Poe to know he was also Force sensitive.

"Don't get me wrong, I'm very grateful to their mystical, healing powers. They should be training other gifted people to do that. But we've got each other, right? We can do our boring, governmental work while they have their seances," Poe chuckled and clapped a hand on Finn's shoulder. "I'm going to go shower and hopefully not get killed this time. Let's leave in twenty?"

Finn knew he should follow Poe and keep an eye on him, but he couldn't get his feet to move. He wanted to be alone in this room to feel whatever feelings he was feeling in this moment. He might could feel the Force moving, but he had no idea what it was doing or what it meant.

Meanwhile, Rey searched for Ben Solo. She thought he had joined the search party this morning, looking for clues as to who attacked Poe. Most of the Resistance was currently cleaning up breakfast or prepping the trip to Coruscant. Ben was not with them, and it was beginning to worry her.

He had been in a fragile state of mind this morning, not to mention the danger the camp might be in. She tried to calm the panic rising in the pit of her stomach as she hiked all over the camp.

A familiar sensation pulsed in the Force - one Rey was accustomed to. She turned around and there was Ben. He was holding something in his hand, and he looked impeccably worried.

"Where are you?" she quickly asked.

"On the outskirts of the north side of camp. I'll come back in a moment, but I had to tell you this _now_."

In his hand was a battered, old purse. He awkwardly opened it and dispensed its contents - three dark, rectangular bricks.

"What is that?" Rey had never seen currency like this before.

"Beskar steel," he answered, his eyes tight and full of apprehension.

She shrugged, not understanding. "Okay?"

"Who uses beskar steel, Rey? For their armor?" His intensity almost frightened her.

"I don't know!"

"The Mandalorians," he answered for her. "This was a payment for a bounty hunter. I found it in a hollow tree. The problem is, there's five thousand hollowed trees in this jungle. Either he didn't find it, or someone didn't pay up and hid it - most likely the latter because Poe is still alive."

"_A bounty hunter?" _Rey murmured, shocked that someone would hire a bounty hunter for Poe.

"We need to get out of here now, just in case." Ben's eyes searched hers, hoping for acquiescence, but she didn't immediately reply.

"Ben…," she began and then chewed her bottom lip, looking at her feet.

He didn't like that. She had done the same thing last night when she was nervous.

"Rey?"

She dropped her swollen lip but still wouldn't look him in the eye. "Finn wants me to come with them to this meeting on Coruscant. Like a protection detail for Poe, I think."

"Rey!" he rolled his eyes, almost throwing the Beskar through a tree. "No, absolutely not! No. No, we need to _leave_, Rey. Someone here is a traitor! Besides the fact that you said after today we leave."

Ben gave her a stern look that both eased her mind and put her on edge.

"I'll be there in a minute." And then he was gone.

A hand on Rey's back caused her to practically jump out of her skin.

"Morning, Rey!" Poe called. Chipper as ever, he went on by her, heading to the bathhouses.

"Poe, wait!" she followed him, desperate to keep him safe but unsure if she should tell him the news about the Mandalorian.

At the same time, Ben Solo quickly made his way back into the camp, careful to keep the Beskar steel under his arm and away from prying eyes. If he hadn't been such an outsider, he wouldn't have wandered off from the group, and he wouldn't have found this peculiar clue. It was lucky but odd. His mind began to race - did someone plant this so that he might find it and assume it was a Mandalorian bounty hunter? Or did someone actually hire a bounty hunter for Poe? Who would do such a thing, anyway? The First Order was annihilated. The Resistance posed no real threat to any system since no galactic government had been established after the fall of the New Republic and subsequent fall of the First Order. No, this had to be personal.

Who could be angry with Poe Dameron?

_Probably a good amount of normal people_, Ben thought sourly. Poe was _a lot_. Not only was he a general and a high ranking officer of the Resistance, he was also outgoing, loud, obnoxious, and a "trigger happy flyboy" as many people regarded pilots. Ben also didn't know his past before the Resistance and had no idea if other people in the galaxy had it out for him.

As pertinent as these thoughts were, only one thing mattered to Ben - getting to Rey and getting them out of here.

What was she thinking, wanting to head off to Coruscant with the man who had a target on his back? Sometimes her goodness was to her detriment. No, Rey could not go to Coruscant with Poe and Finn. She would be in too much danger, and she would be away from him. Not to mention, that would push them even farther back from leaving this godforsaken jungle.

Could she not see that? Every step toward the Resistance was a step away from him.

He was past the main area of camp now, passing through the makeshift dining hall and kitchens, when a murmur in the Force caught his attention. Who was that? A jolt of anger and revenge, though small and weak, pulsed through the Force.

Turning, he saw a figure run past the treeline, a blur in the distance.

He felt torn. He needed to get to Rey but an extremely suspicious character was within reach...

_Not my problem. Rey is my only concern. _

And with that, he went to find his soulmate.

He found her standing outside the bath houses, her yellow lightsaber casting a bright glow onto her face that brightened even more when she saw him appear. God, she drove him crazy sometimes.

"I'm guarding Poe," she announced, trying not to look him in the eye. "He's almost finished, I think."

Ben nodded, sighing. "Rey - "

Finn interrupted yet another of their conversations, as he jogged up to them. "We've got to go! Tell Poe to hurry! Meet me on the _Falcon_ in five."

Rey's and Ben's eyes met. Her expression was guarded and incomprehensible; his was open and disbelieving.

"Rey, please…," was all he said, hoping it was enough to keep her with him.

"Finn knows we're going to leave," she explained. "I can do this mission, get back within a day or so and then we'll head to Ahch To, I promise. If I didn't go and something happened to Poe, I could never forgive myself."

Ben inhaled and exhaled slowly, trying to calm his nerves.

"Why don't you come, too?" she suggested amidst his silence. "We can both get a feel for the new Reformed Republic before beginning the new Jedi Order. Then, we can leave from Coruscant for Ahch To."

It honestly wasn't a bad idea, unfortunately; it was quite logical. Knowing the path the Republic would take for certain would benefit them in the long run as they learned to mingle the Jedi with the government.

But Ben didn't feel logical. He felt inexplicably angry and jealous. Rey had chosen _him_, silenced General Finn for _him, _and wanted to leave for _him_. Why was she wanting to postpone the inevitable?

Poe knocked on the creaky, wooden door. "Umm...can I come out, please?"

As Ben followed Rey and Poe to the _Falcon_, he wondered what it was exactly that had changed him from all powerful Supreme Leader to whatever he was now that constantly followed this peculiar woman across the galaxy. The smile on her face as Chewie, C-3PO, and BB-8 boarded his father's ship held more wonder for him than the Unknown Regions. It was true, he was a changed man through and through - not only changed to the Light from the Dark, but changed permanently because of her.

For a moment, Ben actually understood why the Jedi of the past had not taken spouses. Attachment was forbidden. It had always seemed odd to him, since the Jedi valued unconditional love. Now, however, looking at this woman in front of him, he understood.

He would do _anything_ for her, including disobeying his Master, or worse. After all, he had murdered Snoke for _her_. He had sacrificed everything he had gained for _her. _He had died for _her._

And he would do it all again, over and over...for _her_.

He boarded his father's ship, swallowing the lump in his throat, and reminded himself love was not one sided. What he did for her, she would do for him.

However, she might need a reminder that she owed him one for this irritating detour to Coruscant.

*****Thank you for reading! Do y'all keep up with Star Wars news? Have y'all heard about the sequel series that will be animated? I'm not sure how I feel about it. I would much prefer a Mandalorian style show with Daisy and Adam - though, I'm sure they're not up for it. **

**:( **

**Not to mention, what do you guys think about a Mandalorian becoming a part of the story? **

**See y'all again soon!*****


	11. Chapter 11

*****Thank y'all for reading! This chapter is very Ben heavy. I just seem to delve into his emotions easily. I love recreating his memories from his childhood. Have y'all read the new comics The Rise of Kylo Ren? I highly recommend! *****

**Disclaimer: I own no rights to Star Wars, unfortunately. Maybe if I did, we would all be happier. **

Ben Solo felt extremely anxious boarding his father's ship. The last time he had been aboard the _Falcon _was moments before he murdered his father.

It was an odd feeling that flowed through him. He didn't quite have flashbacks to happy memories or an overwhelming reminder of his father's love. Although he could remember his father and Chewie sitting in the pilot and co-pilot seat, he remembered himself as a child in the second row more thoroughly - how he had felt pushed aside, like a burden on his smuggler father. And when he became angry...things would happen...mechanics would malfunction, people would get hurt. Ben had not understood his power as a child, but his parents did. They were terrified of him, and in his shame he would hide in the gunner seat in the bottom of the ship. He wouldn't touch anything, only pretend to, and dream about being a great fighter pilot one day - even faster than his father's hunk of junk. He would have a shiny, new fighter with multiple guns and a hyperdrive that consistently worked. His parents wouldn't ignore him then. They wouldn't be afraid of him. They would be proud of him and his accomplishments.

Ben had resented his parents for over a decade, and even though he had made peace with them, he had never truly realized that all he wanted as a child was for his parents to be proud of him.

"Ben?" Rey's calm presence and voice interrupted his thoughts. He was still standing in the hall just inside the door.

Blinking, he stepped farther inside, allowing the door to close and lock - it was a sound he had heard thousands of times.

"Are you okay?" she asked, grabbing ahold of his forearm.

He swallowed. "Yes, I'm fine."

A Wookee bellow interrupted them and Chewie embraced both of them tightly, humming happily to himself that they were together with him before heading to the cockpit.

"He's happy you're here," Rey nudged Ben.

"I know," he sighed, and a small green and white droid ran into his boot.

"Excuse me. Distance antenna not calibrated correctly," a robotic voice answered as the little cone head rolled away.

Ben gave Rey a questioning look to which she only shrugged and followed behind Chewie. He hesitated for a brief moment before following her, passing Finn and Poe as they played an ancient version of holochess. They didn't acknowledge him. He preferred it that way.

Then, the feelings he had been avoiding almost crushed him as he stood in the doorway to the _Falcon's_ cockpit.

This cramped, dusty, rigged together cockpit was his childhood home. The many homes and apartments he had stayed in with his mother never felt like a home to him as a child. But the _Falcon_ had been the only consistent thing in his young life besides Chewbacca. It felt even smaller and more cramped than he remembered. So many buttons and levers were held together with an assortment of wire and tape. Nothing was shiny or new or perfect. Everything was worn out, battered, and abused far past its guaranteed lifetime, including the bucket seats he had taken quite a few naps in. Somehow, that made it better, that made it home.

He almost felt guilty for wanting that shiny, new fighter as a child.

As he stepped into the tight cockpit, his forehead whacked the doorframe. No wonder the cockpit felt smaller, he was much taller.

Rey leaned over Chewbacca and helped tap in the coordinates to Coruscant. When she turned around, Ben was rubbing his forehead.

"Would you like the pilot's seat?" she asked with a smile.

"No, that's okay," he sat down behind Chewie. "I'll just sit here." He could barely fit his long legs behind Chewie's seat.

The Wookee barked an unhappy string of noises.

Rey turned back to him with a scrunched up nose. "I think Chewie wants you to drive."

His heart practically pounded as one certain flashback popped into his memory - his father slapping his hands away from the control panel in front of the pilot seats when he was only three years old. He had desperately run down to the gunner position, almost falling down the skinny ladder as he collapsed into tears. He had simply wished to be like his father.

And then one other memory - it was the same scene, only he was a few years older. Han Solo had told him that one day, the _Falcon_ would be his, and he could be the next best smuggler in the galaxy. At the time, this promise grated his nerves. He didn't want the _Falcon_, and he didn't want to be a smuggler. He had completely thrown away the notion of wishing to be anything like Han Solo.

Now, he smiled a soft, sad smile. He had made peace with his past and with his parents. His future was with Rey, in this new life, as Ben Solo once again.

And a Solo flew the _Millennium Falcon_.

Rey had made some adjustments, he noticed, as he began flipping switches and powering up the ship. She was mechanically intelligent beyond her years, and her adjustments greatly aided the decrepit engine as it rose into the sky. He easily guided it out of the atmosphere and into the blackness of space.

Ben could feel Rey's and Chewie's gazes on him, but he didn't say anything. They were both filled with happiness and contentment seeing him piloting his father's ship.

_You're home, _Rey thought silently. _You've fully come home._

BB-8 rolled up to her with a curious beep and head tilt.

"No, it's not mine. This was Ben's father's ship. That's why he's flying," she explained to the droid.

"It _is _yours," Ben answered. "He would want you to have it."

"Good thing we're headed in the same direction, Master Solo."

He could feel her mischievous grin without turning around. It eased his mind tremendously.

"Master Solo, how good to see you aboard this vessel again," C-3PO made his way into the extremely cramped cockpit. "Han and Leia would be so proud."

Ben blinked and flipped on the hyperdrive, letting his eyes become unfocused as the stars flew past them at lightspeed. The ease he felt immediately became contaminated with regret and sorrow.

He felt Rey move toward him, their invisible string becoming shorter as she leaned up to whisper in his ear, "They would be proud, Ben. So proud. All they wanted was for you to come home."

It was overwhelming. He was feeling too much: happiness, belonging, hope, excitement, anxiety, regret, nostalgia, shame, family, love, pride, resentment. It was all too much. He had to step away for a moment.

Putting the _Falcon _on autopilot, he squeezed past the gold droid that annoyed him to no end and past the Resistance generals toward the back of the ship.

He heard C-3PO ask, "Was it something I said?"

Thankfully, Rey did not follow him. Whether she sensed he needed to be alone or not, he was simply thankful.

The hatch to the gunner position was in the same place he remembered and just as hard to open. If memory proved correct, he had to lean the wheel forward just a hair to get it to spin without catching.

He breathed a sigh of relief as the hatch flipped open.

Ben barely fit down the narrow ladder into the tiny space. The hatch couldn't close; he was much too tall, but this space was his safe haven as a child. Two people couldn't fit down here. He could be alone with no threat of intrusion.

With a few deep breaths, he immediately felt calmer and slightly embarrassed that he, once again, had to run to this spot because of his emotions. But it was over soon, and he could breathe again. Something about this tight space always helped him reign in his volatile feelings that threatened to break him apart.

He also realized just how broken he was, but he knew that it didn't matter to Rey. She was broken, too. Two broken halves of the same soul.

When Ben emerged from the hatch, he felt lighter and clearer. His emotions weren't overtaking him anymore; he decided to savor them and savor being home.

Rey and Chewie didn't say anything when he returned. They were content to let him be and let him process in peace, and for that, he was grateful.

It would not take long to reach Coruscant. Finn and Poe were beginning to wish for more time as they discussed their plans for the meeting. Although Ben had learned quite a bit about government as Supreme Leader, he had delegated many tasks to General Hux and other officers. Having extremely uncommon Force strength caused his inferiors to follow through on their delegations thoroughly.

The names Arbo and Madmund kept coming up in the generals' conversation. Ben knew the rulers of Coruscant but not well. He had spoken to them a handful of times as Supreme Leader. Once Palpatine had returned, he had focused his energy on finding the ancient Emperor and also ending the Resistance. Politics bored him, and he often felt judged for his decisions, though he didn't care. Still, his focus had been on intrusions in the Force, not government.

Would the senators recognize him? Would it impact the negotiations?

He better stay on the _Falcon, _out of sight, just in case.

Finn and Poe joined them in the cockpit as they began their descent to the ecumenopolis. It had been years since Ben had seen Coruscant. It was a vibrant and loud place, crawling with all types of humanoids and aliens. Skyscrapers of all sizes jutted into the smoggy sky. Billions of light aircraft flew around them in invisible traffic lanes. The sheer volume of life created a dull buzz of background noise as soon as they entered the atmosphere.

"Wow," Rey murmured under her breath. "I've never seen anything like this."

Ben followed the directions to the Federal District, where air traffic control began to flag them down to a small landing pad outside the decrepit Senate Office Building.

He grew tense, worried he might be identified as ex-Supreme Leader. Perhaps these senators and their staff had weak minds, and he could lie to them easily if he came in contact with them.

Finn and Poe exited the _Falcon_ and cordially greeted the Senate staff that waited outside the door. As Ben powered down the ship, he felt Rey's distinct spirit pushing into his mind, worried about him.

"Rey, I can't be here. What if I'm recognized?" he hurriedly told her. "Chewie and I will stay with the _Falcon_."

Chewie growled as he flipped switches, wanting to explore the city.

"Okay, I'll stay with the _Falcon_," Ben corrected.

"I don't want to leave you here alone," Rey answered, her eyes tightening.

"Don't worry about me. Do you feel safe enough to go without me?"

She nodded. "I'll stay in touch. But you're right. It's what's best. This deal has to go through."

He nodded back, anxious for them to be apart on a strange planet. Chewbacca stood and hugged Rey before exiting the ship to explore the city - perhaps looking for new smuggling work.

"Please, be careful." Ben followed Rey to the door. Finn and Poe had already gone ahead toward the Senate.

She nodded once more and began to leave, but he placed a hand on the wall in front of her shoulder to stop her. She turned back to him with her brows raised.

Instead of answering, he kissed her soundly, hoping to convey just how much she meant to him. He had abandoned everything for her, including his own identity. Surely, she knew how important she was. She was the only being in the galaxy that mattered.

Blushing, Rey smiled as they pulled apart. His eyes swam in hers, looking for proof that she understood the depth of his feelings for her.

"Hurry back to me," he whispered before kissing her forehead and letting her go to what he assumed was her last Resistance meeting.

In the meantime, Ben had nothing to do. He rummaged through the _Falcon_, noticing random downgrades and upgrades throughout the craft. Rey had taken good care of it, but it had been well used in the war. After one walk through, it wasn't interesting anymore.

Bored, he finally went to lie down in the small sleeping quarters. This bed wasn't much more comfortable than those awful cots the Resistance had. He had just closed his eyes when something shimmering caught his attention.

He sat up sharply, stunned.

A Force ghost, much like his mother and uncle, stood across the room from him. He had never seen this man before, but he had heard his voice once in a dream.

"Grandson, how nice to finally speak with you."

*****FINALLY going to get an Anakin/Ben moment. **

**This has nothing to do with this story so much, BUT I have been thinking...I know Disney was hell bent on a female protagonist for the sequel series. And I love Rey, but...I really wish Ben had been the sole focus since he is the actual Skywalker of the series. It would've been a good change of pace from focusing entirely on the good/light side. Just a thought I had :) Kylo Ren/Ben did not get near enough screen time. I'm really enjoying the comics and hope they make more!**

**See y'all again soon! Thank you so much for reading!*****


	12. Chapter 12

*****I am so sorry with the delay in this chapter! Everyone in my family has been sick :( I also have been super busy with work and my side jobs. It's been ****_interesting_**** to say the least. I wish I could tell y'all all about it! Another day, another time, maybe. This chapter is mainly Ben & Rey connecting to Anakin & Padme. This chapter was quite unplanned, but flowed easily. I like it! Hope you do too! Next chapter will be more action oriented. :) Thank y'all for being patient with me. I am so sorry, again! I've NEVER gone this long without uploading. Hope it doesn't happen anymore!*****

**Disclaimer: I own no rights to Star Wars, unfortunately. Maybe if I did, we would all be happier. **

Everything was so _loud_. The sheer volume of beings, aircraft, droids, speeders, and technology had Rey on high alert. This place had to be the exact opposite of the Jakku desert. In the five minutes it took for her to cross the landing pad to the outer Senate doors, she thought her eardrums would burst.

A green, female, humanoid type creature she had never seen before held the door for her as she hurried inside behind Poe and Finn. A fleeting feeling caused her to pause for a moment - Ben was confused yet excited, an odd presence surrounded him. What it was, she didn't know. She felt no danger, so she allowed the feeling to pass and continued on behind her generals. The hallway they traversed was narrow and bland, a sharp contrast to the excitement outdoors.

The green woman led them into a small conference room. The room was dated, decorated in a style from the Empire era. Old, diplomatic type signs and pictures hung around the room - it's only decoration. According to rumor, the general economy had practically bottomed out during the Empire and had never risen since. Only the lawless were rich nowadays.

"The senator and junior senator will be with you momentarily," the green woman announced boringly before she exited a side door.

"Party outside. Funeral inside," Poe murmured under his breath as he and Finn took seats side by side.

Rey moseyed around the room, looking at the history on the walls. None of it was truly worth noting, except for one picture near the side door. It was a photograph of the Senate hall, completely filled, with a white haired, older man sitting in the center.

She immediately blinked away as emotion clouded her vision, but something told her to look back at the photo.

Near the edge, on the right, was a beautiful young woman with an elaborate hairstyle and expensive clothes. There was something about her…

"Generals, how good it is to finally meet with you in person," Senator Arbo entered with Junior Senator Madmund hot on his heels. Arbo was a middle aged man with a sharp nose and even sharper eyes. Madmund was a shorter, slightly rounder, and slightly younger carbon copy of his superior.

As Finn and Poe introduced themselves, Rey stood quietly behind them, a definitive guardian.

"And you are?" Arbo directly asked her, his expression one of slight intrigue mixed with unexpectancy.

"I'm Rey," she answered.

"Rey who?"

She could feel the tension rolling off of her best friends. If she said Rey Palpatine, it might destroy everything they had worked for to get to this meeting. If she said Solo, it would connect her to Ben, the previous Supreme Leader.

"Rey Skywalker," she answered, swallowing a lie lump in her throat.

"Skywalker?" the senator answered, his curiosity piqued. "Are you some kind of guardian for these boys?"

"She's a Jedi," Finn interjected proudly.

"A Jedi? I heard the last Jedi died in battle with the First Order...if he ever actually existed to begin with," the junior senator debated.

"Master Luke Skywalker trained me, and I have taken his name as my own." It was as good of an explanation as any, but Arbo's sharp eyes caught hers. She could sense his uneasiness and hoped her feeble story dissuaded him from asking any other questions.

He dubiously dropped his gaze from her and opened a hologram tablet, pulling out a myriad of charts and graphs to show Finn and Poe.

As they began to discuss politics and economics, Rey returned to her position in the back of the room, drawn to the old picture from decades ago.

Who was that woman? Why did she capture her interest? She was lovely, to be sure, but that was not what Rey was drawn to. There was something else...some history there…

And then she had a vision of the past, so real it could've been present. An entire lifetime floated past her eyes within seconds.

The beautiful woman with white face paint and a red lip, smiling at a young, blond boy. Then years had passed, the boy had become a man, and she fancied him even though she shouldn't. Death, fear, war, politics. It was all a blur, but one thing remained - her love for this handsome man. Power emanated from him. Rey had heard his voice before. Who was he?

_Ani? Anakin!_

Rey felt complete anguish from the woman before the vision abruptly ended, and she was breathlessly thrown back into the present.

With an ungraceful stumble backwards, Rey caught her breath.

_Anakin. Anakin Skywalker. Darth Vader. She was his wife. That was Luke and Leia's parents before...,_ she thought silently in total shock.

"Is she okay?" one of the senators asked Finn.

He politely answered, "She meditates sometimes."

Rey could feel the stares from the four men at the table behind her, but she didn't care. The presence she had felt just then from Anakin Skywalker was the odd presence she had felt with Ben only moments ago.

It seemed that Anakin had finally come to visit his grandson.

Meanwhile, Ben Solo was speaking with his actual grandfather for the first time in his life.

The ghost that stood before him flickered with the essence of the Force. He was a tall, handsome, young man with wavy hair and mischievous features that exuded almost arrogant power.

"Grandfather?" Ben managed to ask, doubtful that this could be real.

He didn't answer immediately. He turned and found a stool, set it in front of Ben, and sat down with a soft smile on his face.

"Ben, do you know you have done everything I couldn't do?" Anakin Skywalker finally asked.

Ben couldn't answer; he had no idea what his grandfather was talking about.

"Do you know why I turned to the dark side in the first place?" When Ben didn't answer, he continued.

"It began with wanting to save your grandmother's life, though I had my own personal issues with the Jedi as well. I was told the only way to save her was through the power of the Sith, the dark side. But after everything I did, I still couldn't do it. In my own anger, I was the one who killed her." Anakin dropped his head, creasing his brow. "I've thought about her everyday since, hating myself for my own choices. And without any teaching at all, you brought Rey back to life by sacrificing your own."

Ben blinked, uncertain that what he was hearing was true.

"I heard you, Ben. You said that 'you would finish what I started.' I wish I could've told you that nothing I did as Vader amounted to anything. The only good thing I did in my life was your mother and your uncle."

Ben shook his head. "That's not true. You defeated Palpatine once before. You killed him to save my uncle. You brought balance to the Force."

Anakin chuckled. "The Force is more balanced now than ever, thanks to you and to Rey. You did finish what I started." The blue, billowy figure stood and began to pace.

"There's so much you cannot understand in your physical form, so much beyond your eyes. The bond between you and Rey is more than love, more than the two of you can imagine. Your dyad is _devout_. Your connection spans across space and time, above reality, above the physical plane. This connection makes both of you immensely _powerful. _Do you feel that?"

"Yes, grandfather," Ben quietly responded.

And then, Anakin turned straight to Ben with a smile on his face. "I'm so proud of you, Ben."

Emotion caused Ben Solo's throat to close up without his consent, as silent sobs heaved in his chest. As a young man, he idolized his grandfather beyond what anyone could imagine. To hear him actually say he was proud of him, well, he simply could not believe it.

"No, I've...I've done terrible things," Ben managed to choke out. "I'm not - "

His grandfather's smile softened, and the middle aged man he had lived to be shone through in his features. "Terrible things teach us that good things are worth saving. And you are _good_, Ben. Your journey was not in vain. The next generation of Force users must learn _balance_. Powerful light and powerful dark can coexist in the Gray."

Ben's eyes shot up, meeting his grandfather's. So, he had been right his thinking - the Jedi needed to use both sides of the Force, not one exclusively. No more Sith, no more Jedi, but something new, something in between.

"And you have an enormous amount of raw strength, Ben. Perhaps, even stronger than me. After all, the Force is strong in our family."

He smiled a little at that.

"Have your midichlorians ever been tested?"

"My what?"

"Nevermind," Anakin abruptly cut off his thought.

While Ben listened to the wisdom of his grandfather, Rey stared out the window of the conference room, mindlessly listening to the plans of the future government. No mention of the Jedi yet, but her sharp senses caught an odd disturbance in the Force.

Outside, an armored, male humanoid was chatting with the green woman, seemingly asking questions. The green woman was probably too naive to realize the danger she was in. While the man's armor did not appear Mandalorian, Rey had a creeping suspicion that this was the same bounty hunter from Ajan Kloss. Multiple weapons were attached all over the man's body. He had an air of determination and darkness to him. This man had seen war and death, up close and personally. She could not let him near Finn or Poe.

Rey needed Ben. Now.

Excusing herself to the restroom, she only stepped one foot out of the conference room, leaving the door cracked, just in case.

Rey had never initiated their Force bonds before - they typically came naturally or by Ben's choice. Concentrating, she closed her eyes and silently connected to the Force first, before reaching out with her feelings for Ben. It was as easy as breathing. The invisible string that held them together was effortless to follow, no matter the distance. In an instant, he was before her, staring at something she could not see.

"Ben! The bounty hunter is here!" she announced in a hushed voice, relieved to lay eyes on him.

As he turned his face to her, dozens of emotions crossed his face. She would have to ask about them later.

"I'm coming," was all he said, and then he was gone.

With a deep breath, she stepped back into the conference room, plastering a fake smile onto her face.

Ben grabbed his lightsaber, attaching it to his hip, and threw on his mended black sweater.

"I have to go," he told his grandfather. "It's Rey."

Anakin nodded. "Yes, you must go."

"Will I see you again?"

His grandfather only shrugged.

"Thank you," a starry eyed Ben said in earnest.

Anakin smiled back at his grandson as he watched him exit the _Falcon_.

"Thank _you, _young Skywalker, for fulfilling your destiny much sooner than I could."

And with that, Anakin Skywalker faded away, becoming one with the Force yet again.

*****I hope to be back soon! Next chapter will be mostly action!**

**I'm so upset about the DVD release for TROS. Did y'all see that none of the extras are deleted scenes? :( SO DISAPPOINTED. I heard there might be some for Disney+, but I'm not holding my breath. I just do not understand...these decisions by LF and Disney make no sense to me, especially money wise when fans obviously love Ben so much! But I guess they didn't ask me...I digress...*****


	13. Chapter 13

*****Once again, thank y'all so much for taking the time to read my story, especially those of you who review! I write when it gives me joy, which is often, but I apologize for the time gap in my posts. I work full time, plus volunteer work, plus I just got a new puppy :). Anyway, I hope you enjoy this chapter! Next chapter, we are headed to Ahch To!*****

**Disclaimer: I own no rights to Star Wars, unfortunately. Maybe if I did, we would all be happier.**

Ben Solo wanted to run as fast as he could to Rey, but that would attract attention, and stealth was what they needed right now. Instead, he meandered around the _Falcon_, lightsaber in hand but not yet ignited, to get a better look at their situation. Still riding an emotional high from seeing his grandfather, he had to practically will himself to calm down. He was much too high strung and energetic. It could cause him issues in a fight if his reflexes were shaky and jittery.

The string that held him and Rey together pulled taunt as he caught her gaze in a window. She looked worried and rightfully so.

He saw the bounty hunter across the way, a Mandalorian wannabe from the looks of him. _Ah,_ he thought. _That was why he wanted the Beskar. He wants to be one of them_. Ben didn't know a lot about the Mandalorians or their Code, but he knew certain tasks had to be met to become one. Earning a Mandalorian suit was near the end of the list, he thought.

Which meant this person was particularly deadly to have made it to the last task.

The bounty hunter was being escorted by a green humanoid female. She was leading him toward the Senate's doors. The female was young, most likely bored with her job, and probably bought whatever story he gave her as to why he needed to be let in the Senate. As soon as the door opened, the bounty hunter turned around for a glance to his six before entering.

Ben followed quietly as the double doors began to close.

Meanwhile, Rey's own yellow saber ignited.

"Rey?" Finn asked, clearly concerned.

"I'm sorry to interrupt your meeting, but we have a visitor," she said calmly but seriously.

The senators looked around at their guests blankly. Poe simply shrugged and smiled.

"Um, what's she talking about?" he whispered to Finn.

Then, the door burst open, flying off its hinges and falling on Madmund, which caused a domino effect into Arbo, landing both senators onto the patterned carpet. The dark, masked bounty hunter filled the entire door frame, blaster in hand.

"Get behind me!" Rey directed her generals, and they happily obliged while drawing blasters.

The bounty hunter was clad in all black, except for his silver, metal helmet that was not Mandalorian in origin. It looked like something from the Empire era, with an elongated back end and straight face shield. His covered head cocked to the side at the sight of a lightsaber.

With a flick of his wrist, two cables shot out, seizing Finn and Poe's blasters and dropping them to the ground five feet away from them. Another shot out to Rey's lightsaber's hilt, but she quickly spun her blade around and cut it in two.

"You will leave this place with me and my friends unharmed," Rey commanded, trying to block her friends with her small body.

The dark figure laughed a muffled laugh. "Nice trick, Jedi. But my mind is not weak."

"Your peripheral vision is, though," a deep voice echoed behind him. Before the bounty hunter could turn, Ben Solo had sliced his lightsaber up under his blaster arm, chopping off his hand. Fortunately, the blade of the lightsaber immediately cauterized the wound, leaving an almost clean scene. Hand and blaster fell to the ground, along with a screaming bounty hunter.

Ben kicked the blaster and extremity away, pushing the attacker's shoulder down further before ripping off the vintage mask and stepping behind him to secure his only remaining upper limb. Rey, Finn, and Poe immediately neared the scene.

The bounty hunter's face was nothing like Rey had expected. He was a young man, perhaps her age, with bright blue eyes and short blonde hair. He wasn't necessarily handsome, with plain, almost boring features. But his eyes had a cold ferocity to them.

"Who hired you to kill Poe Dameron?" Rey asked darkly, not playing tricks this time. To her right, she could see the senators crouching behind an office chair, their faces full of bewilderment.

The man chuckled darkly before spitting in her face. Ben's lightsaber blade was at his neck within seconds. The emotion that overcame him was new to him. He could barely contain himself from slicing this monster's head off.

"Try that again and see what happens?"

The hunter smiled ruefully, a knowing twinkle in his eye. "I thought Jedi weren't supposed to have partners?"

"I _will_ kill you. Answer her question." Ben almost hoped he would have to.

Licking his lips, the hunter sighed. "Testy. I didn't know murder was the Jedi way, either. The stories I grew up hearing were different, I suppose. I will warn you - she won't like my answer."

"I don't care," Rey answered sharply.

"Alright then. I'll tell you. For a price."

Ben's saber began to singe his collarbone, causing the hunter to scream.

"The price is your life. Take it or leave it," Ben threatened, hoping enough of his own shadow still remained to frighten the worthless trash before him. When he heard no response, he dug his saber in further.

"I don't need you to speak. I will take it from your mind. Do you understand?"

The young man didn't seem to understand until his temples almost visibly throbbed, and he was overcome with immense mental pain.

The bounty hunter decided to speak up after that, though he was quite unhappy.

"Fine! It was an inside job, okay? Your own people hired me. I've been working whatever jobs I can work to get Beskar." He squirmed uncomfortably.

"To join the Mandalorians?" surmised Ben, removing the blade from his throat. "Well, that won't be happening. You're not the greatest bounty hunter."

Poe and Finn's eyes met, neither having an idea who could do this.

With a sneer, the hunter lunged forward, but Rey was prepared. Her saber was at his throat before he could get a leg up.

"There is no need for this. We need a name."

The hunter only shrugged. "I don't have one. We worked on a no name basis. I wouldn't know her. She wouldn't know me."

"Well, now we know it's a she," said Finn.

Embarrassed for revealing that much, the hunter closed his mouth.

"Did I mention you're the worst bounty hunter?" Ben reminded him, grasping his wrist even tighter to pull him up off the floor. He slung him into a conference chair and secured his remaining wrist to the armrest with the hunter's own shackles.

"Sorry about this, by the way," Rey apologized to the senators as they slowly stood, still keeping their distance.

As worried as Finn and Poe were, they offered to finish their meeting with the senators before interrogating the bounty hunter further.

"Why don't you two take him out in the hall," Poe suggested, though the worry emanating from him and Finn was almost palpable. After all, there was a traitor in their midst. How were they to build a government from nothing if their own people were against them?

Troubled as they were, they continued a now awkward meeting with the senators.

Ben quickly learned that he didn't know the combination to the shackles now attached to the office chair. Instead, he had to roll the chair out the door into the bland hallway while Rey shyly dropped the severed hand and blaster in a trash can, hoping the trash was emptied often. Keeping themselves between the hunter and the door, Ben finally let out a sigh of relief that Rey was okay.

Would he always feel this way? Would he always be worried about her wellbeing every moment for the rest of his life? His memory flashed back to their first fight on the same side, the throne room of the Supremacy, where he had almost lost his own fight worried about hers.

Yes, the rest of his life would be exactly the same. He understood, yet again, why the Jedi of the past had no partners.

But, he and Rey were not simply lovers. They were a dyad - a devout one, as his grandfather had said. This was prophesied; this was meant to be. The Force had created this bond.

_The Force and the Jedi are not one in the same,_ he reminded himself. The Jedi had created their own Code. It was not from the Force itself, but of the minds of men who thought they knew best. He and Rey would have to rewrite this Code, create their own, with balance in mind. Like the Gray Jedi.

Feeling his odd thought process, Rey's eyes squinted and a smile teased at her lips. "What is it?"

He breathed a calming breath, pushing his plans out of mind. "Are you alright?" he asked. She must always come first.

"Of course," she smiled, almost mocking him.

He returned her smile with a crooked one. "Rey, I saw my grandfather. My real grandfather. Not the voices I used to hear in my head."

"Anakin," she replied, almost knowingly, and her eyes clouded over as if visiting a memory.

"Yes? How do you - "

"I saw him. I saw your grandmother, too. Her name was Padme. She was beautiful but sad. His turning was so difficult for her." Rey's face turned tragic.

"He killed her," Ben filled in the gaps. "In his anger, he was the cause of her death. He wanted to learn to save her from dying. That's why he turned. But in the end, it was his fault."

A low whistle interrupted their important conversation, causing them both to turn to the source.

The bounty hunter chuckled in his leaned back chair. "Man, I thought I had issues, but I ain't got nothing on you two. Voices in your head? Your _real_ grandfather that killed his wife? What kind of family do you come from?" He began to laugh again.

With no prompting whatsoever, Rey walked right up to his boring face and punched him right between his daring blue eyes, causing his nose to bleed immediately . He wailed loudly, and a few secretaries peeped their heads out of office doors. The green female, from earlier, covered her mouth with her hands in shock at the scene; but one look from the two Force users sent her back into her office.

The hallway was soon quiet, but the hunter continued to complain and sob as shock from losing his right hand set in.

"I'm done for. I'm so done for," he bemoaned.

"How did you make it in this business?" Ben asked while grinning proudly at his other half.

Still crying, the young man laughed sardonically. "You don't have to be good at anything in a crippled, poor galaxy like this one. You just have to have money."

Even though his comment stung Ben as ex-Supreme Leader, they decided to ignore him, unconcerned about the destiny of a terrible bounty hunter. Soon, the conference room door opened, and both generals and senators stepped out. The energy that surrounded them was content, Rey noticed.

"We will be in touch. Although you two are practically ignorant of governmental procedures, perhaps that is what the galaxy needs at such a time as this. Not more politicians, but more grit and experience to bring equality, even to the Outer Rim," Senator Arbo stated proudly, shaking Poe's hand and then Finn's.

The generals beamed with gratitude. "Thank you for the opportunity, Senator," said Poe. "We just want to see this galaxy thriving."

"As do we," Madmund concurred with a tip of his head before they turned to head down the hallway. They stopped in front of Ben and Rey and their prisoner.

"Quite the bodyguard you have here," Arbo commented on Rey. "And she has another half. Did Luke train you as well?" His eyes narrowed as he scanned Ben's enormous form.

"Yes, sir," Ben politely replied, hoping the waves of calm he was sending toward the senators would cause them to continue on without any questions.

Arbo leaned forward ever so slightly, fully taking in Ben's visage.

"Don't I know you, Jedi?"

"He's a war hero," Finn quickly explained, hoping to defer the tension he was beginning to feel. Surprised, Rey shot him a thankful, happy smile.

Unperturbed, Arbo continued. "What's your name?"

Ben froze, immediately deciding not to say Solo. The entire galaxy did not know that Ben Solo was, in fact, Kylo Ren, thanks to an order from Snoke. But his family had known, and who they had told in the political circle was unknown to him.

"Ben Skywalker," he answered honestly. After all, that was his family's name.

"Are all these new Jedis called Skywalkers?" Madmund chuckled.

"Right now, we are the only Jedi, but we will not be the last," answered Rey.

Arbo seemed intrigued by that idea. "There have been no Jedi involved in governmental work since the Clone Wars. It would be a pleasure to have the honor once again. Please stay in touch with your friends in the Resistance. Once we have a more formal structure, we would love to welcome the Jedi's headquarters back to Coruscant."

Rey beamed with pride. "Your thoughts are appreciated, Senator. We thank you."

"Generals, Jedi, and...bounty hunter...we bid you good day. Please, enjoy Coruscant if you wish. If not, safe travels home," Arbo commended as he and Madmund continued down the hall.

Once the senators were out of sight, the foursome exhaled a sigh of relief and expectation.

"Everything went well, I presume?" Rey grinned.

"Better than well! They've needed new blood in here for a long time," explained Finn.

As Finn and Poe explained the details of their new trade agreements and plans to include more systems, the forgotten bounty hunter began to sing an unfamiliar tune loudly.

"Okay, I'm going to punch this dude in the face." Poe sauntered off with his fist clenched.

"I already have!" Rey, Finn, and Ben followed close behind.

They were too late, and Poe's fist had already made contact with the hunter's broken nose.

He wailed even more as they dragged him, office chair and all, out of the quiet, outdated Senate and onto the _Millennium Falcon_. They hoped their new friends wouldn't miss one chair.

"Have I mentioned you're the worst bounty hunter ever?" Ben asked as the door of the _Falcon_ sealed shut.

*****Sarcastic Ben Solo is my favorite. I wish we would've gotten more dialogue from him throughout the entire trilogy! Have y'all seen the leaks from the novelization? Honestly, it didn't make me feel better...it made me feel worse! My Reylo feels/Ben Solo feels have multiplied yet again! Also, Bob Iger stepping down as CEO shocked me! I hope the new CEO will understand the degree of damage that Disney has done to Star Wars with TROS and try to fix what they have messed up. I heard there was an unnamed Ben Solo project in the works, but who the heck knows. It's mass chaos on Disney, I've decided.**

**See y'all soon! Next chapter will be more Reylo focused! *****


	14. Chapter 14

*****Thank y'all for being so patient and always wanting a next chapter! And thank you for the reviews, favorites, etc! I hope all of y'all are safe and well during this crazy time. It's so scary. I hope this chapter will give you a place to go while you're stuck at home. Or if you're like me, stuck at work in this mess. Enjoy!****

**Disclaimer: I own no rights to Stars Wars, unfortunately. Maybe if I did, we would all be happier. **

"Oh my!" exclaimed C-3PO, as a strange man in an office chair with only one hand was wheeled into the _Falcon_ by Poe and Finn. "What kind of trouble have you two gotten us into now?"

"Zip it, Threepio," Poe covered the droid's metal mouth with his hand. "I don't need your commentary."

The bounty hunter kept squealing hysterically, hoping to attract attention, but the _Falcon's _door sealed shut. He was trapped with his new, unhappy friends.

"So, do you talk first? I talk first?" Poe asked darkly as he sat down on a stool in front of the bounty hunter's chair.

Ben smirked a bit, remembering the first time he and General Dameron had met. Poe had truly grown his leadership skills since then, but he still retained the same sauntering flyboy qualities he always had.

"Haven't I talked enough, or is gigantuan over there going to probe my brain some more?" the sweaty, bleeding young man asked.

Finn stood behind Poe, arms crossed but expression open. "We need to know everything you know about the Resistance."

The bounty hunter wouldn't tell them a thing. Ben even tried scouring through his mind again but to no avail. The hunter truly didn't know the woman's name or face. He only communicated with her over technology, never in person. All records of their dealings had since been deleted.

After a grueling half hour interrogation, the crew had gotten nowhere with the bounty hunter, and Poe's and Finn's scheduled pickup and departure time was nearing. They had alerted Connix to pick them up after the meeting so Ben and Rey could continue on to Ahch-To.

Giving up for the time being, Poe finally stood, hands on his hips, and began to pace. The entire atmosphere was anxious and exasperated. Even Finn's usually bright light seemed dimmer with stress, Rey noticed.

Ben could sense Rey's uneasiness about leaving her friends. He could also see her thoughts with barely any effort. If she felt him invading her mind or not, she never checked up or blocked him. Instead, she chewed her bottom lip practically in two while they waited on Connix's ship to arrive.

_Maybe we can still help them, even from Ahch-To. Maybe I can visit once a week or something. Surely there's something else I could do...I could even wait - _

_No_, Ben sent the simple thought directly to her mind. They were not waiting any longer.

Her eyes shot up then, piercing his.

He immediately felt a twinge of guilt but let it pass.

The door opened and Rey's gut twisted into an uncomfortable wad, knowing she was truly about to move on with her life and leave her closest friends behind. But it was only Chewie returning to the _Falcon_, not Connix.

With a sigh of relief, Rey turned to Finn.

"I need to talk to you. Before…"

He nodded, becoming even tenser, and they eased to the cockpit to speak in private. Ben's eyes followed behind her; she could feel their invisible string as she walked away from him, but knew this was something she had to do before they left.

She had not prepared any words for her best friend. Actually, she felt a large lump in her throat and tried to clear it out.

It appeared Finn was feeling the same way.

"Finn, I - "

"Rey…"

They chuckled, both speaking at the same time.

"You go first," she motioned, as emotion clouded her eyes.

Finn smiled fondly at her. "Rey, I don't think I can ever thank you for just being there for me, you know? You're the sister I never knew I needed...and my best friend...and I don't know how to do life without you, honestly…"

Wiping tears, she smiled back. "I feel the same, Finn. You're family. You'll always be the first family I ever had. I don't know where I'd be if you and BB-8 hadn't found me on Jakku."

"Freakin Jakku," Finn laughed and Rey echoed with a giggle.

"Finn...I want you to really think about what I said earlier...about coming with us to train in the ways of the Force."

He nodded, like he had considered it for real. "If it weren't for Poe, I'd still be a stormtrooper...I owe it to him and to Leia to stay with the Resistance right now."

Rey nodded in return, sad, but knowing it was where Finn needed to be.

"And Leia would want you to take care of her son and rebuild the Jedi."

She couldn't believe Finn had said that, especially after their fight from this morning. "Do you mean that?"

He opened his arms for a hug. "Absolutely."

Rey squeezed Finn's shoulders as tight as she could. He had been her rock for only a short while in comparison to the rest of her life, but she almost couldn't remember life without him. It was like he had said - they were unrelated siblings. And this wasn't the end; this was the start of something new for both of them.

Tears streamed down both of their faces as they took in each other's presences, uncertain of when they would see each other again.

"I wish I could do more for you, Finn. More for Poe. More for the Resistance," Rey murmured into his shoulder.

"You're doing plenty by rebuilding the Jedi," Finn assured her, pulling her to arms length. "Hey, I am so proud of you. You know that?"

She shook her head yes, still crying. "And I'm so proud of you."

A knock on the door frame interrupted them. It was Poe announcing that Connix had arrived.

The knot was back in Rey's stomach, knowing this was it for a good while.

"Hey, come here," Poe said, seeing Rey so emotional. He was used to seeing her be assuredly strong and sure of herself. Wrapping his arms around her, Poe realized just how much he had come to rely on the strange girl from Jakku. She wasn't as close to him as she was Finn, but Poe had become her family, too. What was it that Finn had said? Another sibling she didn't know she had needed.

"Gonna miss you, kiddo," whispered Poe. "Please take care of yourself."

Rey nodded. "Take care of yourself, too, and Finn. I'll come visit sometime. Or you can come visit us."

"Us, huh?" Poe chuckled. "This is getting serious."

She swatted playfully at Poe as they let go of one another and headed out of the cockpit single file. In the hall, Ben punched the keypad to open the _Falcon_'s door.

Fierce, little Connix was there at the ready, communication pad in hand. With a secretive smile on her face, she turned the pad around to a startled Rey. The entire Resistance was waving back at her, cheering her on, wishing her luck.

More tears came unwillingly, as she clasped her hands over her mouth.

"I love you. All of you. You will do amazing things," she finally said to her friends that were lightyears away.

"May the Force be with you!" chanted the pad's crackling speakers before going black. Rey could remember almost all of their happy little faces grinning at her. But one thought lingered in the back of her mind...which one had turned on Poe?

"See ya around," Connix gave Rey a quick side hug, interrupting her thoughts, before heading out the door to reconfigure her own ship to return to Ajon Kloss.

"What will you do with the bounty hunter?" Rey asked Poe as soon as Connix was out of earshot.

Poe simply shrugged, over the entire ordeal. "We will take him and keep him hostage for now until we figure this whole thing out. There's not an exact order to law enforcement in the galaxy right now, but I'm sure someone would pay big money for him. Well, I don't know for sure. He's kind of the worst."

Rolling the mangled, angry young man in the office chair out the door, Poe called to Connix. "Hey, we have one more!"

"See you later, General!" Rey hollered at his retreating form, grinning brightly.

He smiled back at her, equally as bright. "I'm expecting all kinds of new Force tricks next time I see you, you hear me? Bye, Ben! Don't let her beat you up too much!"

Ben leaned around Rey and gave Poe a quick wave; but Rey could feel him boiling with anxiety. She would have to ask him about that later.

C-3PO, R2-D2, BB-8, and D-O were the next to disembark the _Falcon_. Rey would miss all them, but especially BB-8. He beeped a whirl of sad beeps that caused her to tear up even more. She squatted down beside him and scratched his round body like she'd seen Poe do a hundred times.

"You're one of my best friends, you know that?"

He booped proudly.

"Poe and Finn are your responsibility now, okay? Can you handle that?"

BB-8 responded with more proud beeps, but she could sense the sad undertone to them. Finn stood to the side, watching Rey speak to the droid with such kindness. That's what made her so special, he thought. She could say all day long how good he was, but there was nothing compared to the kindness that Rey gave to each and every creature in the galaxy...including the man who was now whisking her away from him.

"You'll take good care of her?" Finn asked Ben Solo.

Ben turned to him, their eyes met, both measuring the other up. Although they both loved her differently, they both loved her so very much.

"Always," Ben finally said.

Finn nodded, clearing his throat. He couldn't shake the suspicious thought that even if Ben Solo had not come back from Exegol with her, she would still be leaving right now.

"You're right," Solo answered his own thoughts. "She's meant to do this, to create a new generation of Jedi. She would do it with or without me...I'm just glad it's with me."

Finn's jaw clenched at the invasion of privacy. He didn't hate Solo, not anymore, but he wasn't family to him like Rey and Poe. He hadn't quite forgiven him for everything he had done, especially to his parents. He had another suspicion that perhaps Ben hadn't forgiven himself either. Maybe Ben needed to hear his own thoughts echoed back to him, as well.

"This is what your parents would want, you know? You and her working together."

Finn could feel Ben's tangible tension and surprise at the mention of his parents, but chose to let it go.

"They loved her...probably even more than me," he chuckled.

"There's something about her. That's for sure."

They watched as Rey tickled BB-8 one last time before letting the four droids disembark the _Falcon_ onto a new journey with the Resistance. She stayed kneeled down for a moment, wiping her tears, letting this sink in, before seeing Finn for the last time.

Teary eyed yet again, they embraced for the last time, at a loss for words.

After what seemed like a very long time, they pulled apart.

"We'll see each other again?" Rey meant it as a statement, but it came out as a question.

"Absolutely," Finn answered, sure. "Absolutely."

Choking back his own tears, he finally managed to let go of his best friend and walk away from the ship that saved them from the godforsaken desert of Jakku.

He heard Chewie's good-bye in Shyriiwook but couldn't turn back around. No, he had to move forward towards Poe or he would be lost in the depth of his feelings right now. Finn put on his general face and didn't look back, though he wanted to. Right now, Poe and the Resistance needed him. Maybe one day, Rey would need him again.

Feeling like she might explode, Rey's first reaction to Ben's arms wrapping around her from behind was automatic anger and frustration. As soon as the emotions came, however, they were gone, because she felt his rejection not only in his feelings but also in the way his arms immediately locked, immobile.

She spun in his hold, letting his clasped hands flip from her stomach to her back.

"I'm sorry, I'm just - "

"It's fine," he whispered; he understood, as best as he could, anyway.

Chewie rumbled something, asking what he should do.

"Do you want to go with Finn and Poe?" Rey suggested automatically, feeling crushed at the thought of leaving another family member behind. "Or stay with us?"

He hummed a happy trail of noises, wanting to stay with them but also to travel wherever he pleased.

"Of course you can go whatever you want in the _Falcon_," Rey explained, leaving Ben's embrace to embrace the hairy Wookiee. "Right, Ben?"

Ben almost panicked for a moment. If Chewie took this ship, then they would be stranded on Ahch-To.

Which, honestly, may not be such a bad idea….

"We'll figure it out. We're all family, right?" he answered, hands in the air, trying to be nonchalant.

Rey beamed at him at the mention of family, and Chewie hummed happily.

Soon, they were up and running with Ben at the helm again and her in the copilot seat. It would take over an hour to reach Ahch-To if Rey remembered correctly. Even though she was sad about leaving her friends, her heart jumped seeing Ben sitting so confidently in the pilot seat of his father's ship.

She could watch him fly all day.

As soon as they cleared the atmosphere, Ben gave her a mischievous grin before jumping to hyperspace, reminding her so much of his father.

Sometime on the journey, she nodded off, exhausted from emotion. Before she knew it, ocean swells and misty, green mountains waved at her from the cockpit window.

"You finally wake up?" Ben asked, flipping switches to begin the descent. She quickly jumped to, wiping her face, and flipping the necessary switches on her side.

"Where to?" He needed a place to land.

"There," she pointed to the rocky beach at the bottom of the steep, meaningful, little island that housed the first Jedi temple.

As soon as they landed, she could feel it - the Force was even stronger here than the last time she had come. It was almost like it was expecting them, the dyad, to arrive at any moment and begin the next chapter of the Jedi's history.

"This place has a plethora of history, doesn't it?" Ben could feel it, too.

Excited and eager to begin, they disembarked onto this next journey together.

*****We are finally away from the Resistance! It's an emotional, sad thing, but also exciting for them to truly be alone together for the first time. Can't wait for what's to come!*****


	15. Chapter 15

*****Hello all! Hope everyone is well! Even tho I'm working like normal, I had a bit of free time this weekend and was able to finish this chapter pretty quick! Hope you enjoy!*****

**Disclaimer: I own no rights to Star Wars, unfortunately. Maybe if I did, we would all be happier. **

The long, winding staircase of stoney steps gave Rey the quiet peacefulness she needed to process. She was where she was meant to be, where the Force wanted her to be. Yet, she couldn't help but feel a bit misplaced. Was it a fear of failure? Fearing she may never create a new Jedi Order? Or was it the sadness of leaving her new family and feeling like a failure to the Resistance? Maybe it was the memories of her first visit here, with Master Luke, that shadowed her outlook. She was so desperate then, searching for hope and purpose. Master Luke had not initially given her either of those things...but Ben had.

_Oh, Ben_.

She reached with her feelings, sensing him climbing steadily behind her, always content to simply be with her.

Guilt instantly flooded her, making the already tight knot in her stomach twist even tighter. She swallowed a lump, hoping he would not ask her about her churning emotions.

Thankfully, he did not. Maybe he sensed he shouldn't, maybe he was simply being polite.

_I have to fix this, fix myself, before we reach the top of this staircase_, Rey told herself, setting a goal. It was not fair to Ben to act this way, mixing him into her confusing depth of emotion when his feelings for her were so solid and sure. She had been honest with him, about not knowing anything about relationships. He had been honest with her, about wanting to build a life with her and building the new Order. None of it would be easy, but if there was anything she was sure about, it was him.

And that thought calmed her weary spirit.

It was about midday when they reached the top of the jagged mountain. The caretakers were already leaving, but they stopped, frozen, when they saw the two humans standing in the middle of the ancient huts.

"And these are?" Ben asked, his sass coming through in his tone.

"These are the caretakers. They've cared for this island for a long time," Rey explained, waving to the odd little creatures. One look at her had quite a few of them rolling their eyes as if to say, "Oh no, _she's_ back." One even stuck a long, purple tongue out at her.

"Do they not like us?" He clearly saw their expressions.

Rey sighed. "They don't like me. I may have, um, torn up a few things when I was here with Luke."

"A few things?" His eyebrows rose. "They're looking at you like you murdered their favorite grandmother."

She couldn't help but chuckle. "I didn't!"

Ben gave a wave to them, pulling their eyes off of Rey and onto himself. "I'm Ben Solo, Luke's nephew. Nice to meet all of you."

Their heads turned to one another at the mention of Luke. Some began to nod in acknowledgement, their expressions turning less sour. One even pulled a handmade necklace off her neck and waddled up to him.

"Thank you," Ben ducked his head as the caretaker put the necklace on his neck. "And for her?" He motioned to Rey.

The little caretaker shook her head and muttered something in a hateful tone.

"They don't like me. They just don't like me," Rey shook her head, having to laugh at the funny scene. "They clearly like you!"

Ben put his hands on his hips, looking so much like his father. "Well, at least they like one of us."

A sudden thought hit Rey, and she expected a much more emotional response from herself. Maybe her emotional reservoir had run out for the day, but her voice carried no emotion as she spoke her thoughts.

"It's because I'm a Palpatine," she whispered, shrugging flatly. "That's why they don't like me. I have Sith blood."

Ben's expression completely unraveled her. She had seen that expression before - in the Throne Room of the _Supremacy_. He was worried, yet understanding, careful, yet open, and all he cared about in this moment was her.

He was about to speak when she stopped him.

"You don't have to say anything. It's okay," she assured him with another shrug. She appreciated his thoughtfulness, but didn't need his pity.

"No, I do. As someone who never wanted to be the legacy child, I think it's important to say." He spoke softly, trying to ignore the tension in his voice. "I never wanted my name. I never wanted to be what everyone expected me to be. That's all I was to my family for a long time...just a set of expectations, just a legacy."

Rey swallowed, listening intently, ashamed she had tried to quieten him. She felt honored when he opened up to her.

"Your situation is different. You had no expectations, no legacy, until recently. But _it doesn't matter_. You're still Rey, still _you_. You can call yourself Palpatine and still be Rey. You can call yourself Jedi or whatever title and name you want and still be Rey. You are more than a name."

The emotion she had expected finally came, itching the corner of her eyes as tears welled up. What he was saying was true; she knew that. She wasn't afraid of her name, but afraid of how it would impact others. She wanted people to feel safe and secure, not scared when she announced herself as a Jedi. She could see it now, she and Ben out doing Jedi missions together, saving people. And the oddest feeling crept into her chest, burning her neck.

Whatever name she called herself, she wished for hers and Ben's to be the same.

When she blinked back to reality, he was smiling softly at her, holding out his hand.

She took it and belonging filled her. She felt at home.

One day they would go on missions and their names would matter. Today, it was just the two of them alone on this island, (save for the caretakers and Chewie) and nothing mattered but growing and learning together.

They continued on, hand in hand, in silence. Rey showed Ben inside the old stone huts before leading him to the first Jedi temple.

As soon as they rounded the rocky curve, Rey gasped.

The temple was destroyed. The ancient, hollowed tree was burnt to a crisp, completely blackened and charred beyond repair.

"It's...gone?" How could the temple be destroyed? Why had the Force led them here to a burned temple to start the next Jedi Order?

Her next thought was being glad she had stolen the ancient texts.

Ben pressed on to the ruined uneti tree, leaving a shocked Rey to play catch up.

When she reached him, he had pushed back some of the black char with his boot, revealing a dirty mosaic still embedded in the temple's floor - a picture of a meditating humanoid with light and dark tiles on either side of him.

"The Prime Jedi," he muttered in awe.

"The what?" Rey had never heard of that before.

"The first Jedi. Look at the balance, the Light and the Dark together." He pointed to different aspects of the mosaic. "That's what I've been sensing. It's exactly what my grandfather told me. The Force wants balance. It wants Gray."

"Your grandfather told you this? Luke said the Jedi do not own the Light side. To think so would be vanity."

"Yes," Ben agreed. "And the Sith do not own the dark. They're not mutually exclusive. Light and Dark can coexist together in the Gray - something between the Sith and the Jedi."

"Together?"

"_Yes_." Energy practically vibrated through him. Gray would be so easy for him and for Rey. Darkness was in his nature, yet he had always been tempted by the Light. The opposite was true for Rey. They were made for this - to bring the Gray Jedi back to existence.

He looked at Rey - she sensed it, too. The Gray was their future.

Around sunset, Ben and Rey eventually left the site of the first Temple with both of their minds reeling with endless possibilities for the future. They wanted to get started right away, but they were hungry and exhausted from travelling all day. The trip down the mountain was much quicker than the trip up, and they were back to the _Falcon_ before they knew it.

Chewie had already roasted a porg or two, shrugging when Rey gave him the stink eye. Ben happily took a crisped leg when Chewie handed it to him, but Rey could not bear to eat the poor little birdlike creature. Instead, she rummaged in the _Falcon_ for a couple of nutrient packs or rations.

As they sat around Chewbacca's fire, Ben told Rey history stories he had grown up hearing - the Clone Wars - how Palpatine had infiltrated the government and overthrew the Senate, which led to Order 66 - how the Empire rose - the Death Star - the adventures Leia, Han, and Luke went on during the Rebellion - and so many more. She listened quietly, enthralled at the history she barely got bits and pieces of on Jakku, and most of that had been wrong.

By nightfall, Chewie began to hum about being sleepy.

"Me, too," Rey groaned, yawning. Too tired to climb the steps back to the huts, she decided to sleep on the _Falcon_.

Ben swallowed his annoyance. The crew's chambers on the _Falcon_ were one small room with three beds and a small closet. He would've offered to carry her up the stairs to the secluded huts himself, but even he admitted how exhausted he was. While Rey showered, he pulled all of the blankets out of the closet. It was cool by the water.

Chewie happily hopped into the bed by the door that had been his for decades, begging Ben to tuck him in.

"I'm not going to tuck you in," Ben argued, though it was a hilarious request. Chewie roared in aggravation saying he had tucked Ben in plenty of times.

"I was a child! You're 235!"

Chewie finally reached under his pillow and brought out a small imagecaster. He flicked it to life, and a hologram of a slightly younger Chewie popped up. As it spun around, Ben saw that the Wookiee was holding something in his arms.

It was him...as a child.

"You've held onto that this whole time?"

Chewie nodded, muttering a string of difficult Shyriiwook that Ben could only understand as nostalgia and love.

Rolling his eyes in fake drama, Ben finally gave in and tucked Chewbacca in, thankful that his one living relative had not forsaken him.

"Yeah, well, this is the last time," he explained to the smug Wookiee when he sensed Rey at the door.

She was grinning broadly at the scene, her hair down and still dripping wet. Her expression almost made him embarrassed at the closeness between himself and Chewie, though he knew she loved it. That's when he noticed she was only wearing a towel, and he became truly embarrassed.

"Sorry to interrupt, but I forgot my bag. Can you hand it to me?" She pointed to a dingy, beige sack that sat on the bed on the back wall.

"Uh, yes, sure," Ben mumbled, grabbing the bag and handing it to her. She took it with her free hand while the other held up the wrapped towel. He tried to keep his eyes from glancing around frantically, catching the bare skin on her back and legs when she turned to go back down the hall. He was unsuccessful.

Blinking, Ben sat down on the bed opposite Chewie.

_Had she meant to do that? To be so alluring and teasing?_

He wasn't sure. It could've been totally innocent; she was forgetful from time to time.

Or it could've been intentional.

When he glanced up to get out of his head, Chewie was eyeing him smugly.

"Shut up," he whispered forcefully.

The Wookiee only bellowed a laugh and rolled over.

When she returned, she was back in her basic white pants and top. Ben was almost disappointed.

"You're turn," she mumbled, passing him to sit her stuff on her bed.

His shower was not relaxing, not relaxing at all, for two reasons. 1. It was short lived since she had used most of the hot water. 2. He couldn't stop thinking.

Letting the quickly cooling water trickle through his dark hair, he leaned back into the wall of the tiny shower. This was absolutely maddening. And he couldn't exactly ask her what her intentions were coming in there wrapped in just a towel because Chewie was sharing a room with them.

Not to mention, he had no idea what he would do if her intentions _had _been flirtatious.

Earlier he had sensed her unease about being alone with him on this island, though it was not because of him. She was unsure of herself, unsure of leaving her friends, unsure she could do this. When the thought of him had entered her mind, she became peaceful, calmer.

That was the only reason he had not asked her about her thoughts. It eased his own mind as well.

He felt so at home with her, so comfortable. And she felt the same.

The water was too cold for comfort now. He quickly got out and wrapped a towel around his middle before slipping on a pair of underwear.

He had one foot in his pants leg before he decided not to put them back on. After all, Chewbacca wouldn't care. Rey had seen him in only his underwear this morning, anyway. Had it just been last night that they shared a tent together? It felt like forever ago.

And tonight they would share a room with a Wookiee, he thought sourly.

Ben gathered his things and headed back to the sleeping quarters, wondering how their relationship would've advanced if it wasn't for his Uncle Chewie.

When he returned, the light had already been turned off and Chewie was snoring soundly. If memory served correct, there was a low level light in the corner. He fumbled in the dark for a moment before clicking it on. The warm glow shone on his bare chest.

Rey rustled, moving in response to the light as it settled on her face. She was already under a blanket with both of her feet kicked out again, like last night.

"Did I wake you?" Ben asked quietly.

She blinked, looking down, but he could've sworn her eyes scanned down his body before they settled on a hole in her blanket.

"No, you're fine."

Nonchalantly, he folded his clothes on his bed and carefully placed them under the bed frame.

"Ben," she called him, and his eyes immediately met hers. The light glowed on her cheeks as she softly smiled at him. "Thank you for coming to Coruscant today, and thank you for coming here with me. I appreciate it."

He nodded in welcome, wondering why she was speaking so formally. Was she nervous?

His eyes never left hers as he sat down in the middle of his bed.

"We can move our stuff to one of the huts tomorrow, so we don't have to climb the mountain everyday," she volunteered.

_Ah_, he thought. _There it is. She's trying to apologize for this predicament._

"Sounds like a plan," he answered.

She nodded, laid down, and pulled the cover back up to her neck all the while yawning.

"You need to sleep. You're exhausted."

Rey nodded again, agreeing wholeheartedly.

Ben decided not to push her anymore tonight. He was hoping she would initiate something - a kiss, an 'I love you,' _something_. After all, she owed him for the trip to Coruscant.

Instead, he moved and sat on her bed. She quickly pulled her knees up to make room for him, like she wanted him beside her.

"Are you okay?" he asked, meaning each word.

She bit her lower lip before taking a deep breath. "I am. I'm where I'm meant to be."

Her words soothed his spirit.

He wiped her tangly, wet hair out of her face before leaning down and kissing her soundly. He hadn't expected the reaction from her. She responded almost immediately, wriggling her fingers into the damp waves at the back of his neck, pulling him practically on top of her.

A snort from Chewie caused them to freeze, both their faces turning to look at him.

"This is your fault," Ben whispered into her ear.

She kissed his neck just below his ear, sending a chill down his spine, an apology.

He kissed her lips again, her eyes barely staying open. She was utterly exhausted, and he needed to let her sleep. Silently, he moved off of her and turned the light off before falling into his own bed. Of course, he had hoped tonight would be a lot more like last night. He wanted to share more with her; she would listen, and he would listen to her in turn. All he wanted was to be close to her. They had both felt such assurance from each other last night that he wanted to experience more. But tonight, he was tired, and they would have many more nights on this island.

After all, if it was up to him, they would share every night together for the rest of their lives.

*****Have y'all read TROS novelization? It's so apparent that Ben loves her so much...gah. It's wonderful and awful at the same time. I finally bought the digital and watched it. There's still so many things I go "why?" about, but I suppose I need to let it go...It's not a bad movie, but I just wanted more in the last movie of a 40 year saga, ya know? And Ben dying just ends everything on such a sour note. Ok, ok, I digress...I could complain all day haha. I hope to be back soon! I have some Jedi plans already written out! **

**Also, I hear y'all asking for FinnPoe/Stormpilot. It's coming, I promise! This story is just mainly focused on Reylo, but I promise it will be in there. I don't think Finn would realize he loves Poe until he gets away from Rey for awhile..IMO. Not that he loves her like that, he just cares about her so much.*****


	16. Chapter 16

*****I'm so sorry it's been so long since I've posted! With everything going on in the world, I've just not had the desire to write. You would think I would want to escape to a different world and stay there a little while. Normally, I do, but my soul has felt heavy the last few months. Everywhere I turn, there's more chaos bad news. I hope this little chapter gives you a glimmer of hope and happiness in the crazy world we are living in right now. I promise to keep writing and finish this story, however long it takes me. Sorry this chapter is a bit shorter than others. Hope all of you are safe and well. xoxo*****

*****Disclaimer: I own no rights to Star Wars, unfortunately. If I did, maybe we would all be happier.*****

"Ben! Wake up! It's morning!" Rey's chipper, bright voice pulled Ben Solo from his slumber. He had actually been sleeping soundly for the first time all night. He had laid awake for hours thinking about Rey, thinking about the future, thinking about the Gray Jedi. Surely, it couldn't be morning yet.

Sitting up with a groan, he flipped his messy hair out of his face and opened his eyes. Rey was sitting by his feet, legs crossed, eyes bright, dressed and ready for the day.

"We've got loads to do," she began, "and it's already later than I expected. What do you want to do first?"

Ben was not an early bird, especially after a day of travel. His eyes automatically closed at her happy tone and the light in the corner. As Supreme Leader, he had normally been left alone until around ten or so. Rey was obviously fine with awakening early. He would have to adjust to that, but that would take time.

She had been rambling for a few minutes now, but he hadn't paid attention. He wasn't quite awake yet.

"Are you okay?" she finally asked. He could feel his face set in a grumpy, blank stare.

"Yeah. I'm just not a morning person," he yawned and rubbed his eyes again. "Not everyone can bounce out of bed like you."

Rey cocked her head like she didn't understand what he was saying. It was quite adorable, and that finally pulled him to consciousness. This was what he had wanted - to be alone with Rey. Well, they were mostly alone, anyway.

They worked in tandem for the rest of the morning, moving into the huts at the top of the island. Without asking, Ben piled his stuff in the same hut as her. It was slow work, even using the Force, and he was soon ready to move on to something else. By lunch time, everything was set up for them, though no one had actually discussed what would become of Chewie and the _Falcon_. Chewie seemed happy enough to help, but Rey feared he would become bored on the island or feel out of place. She wanted him to be happy.

Then, there was the task of establishing the Gray Jedi. Rey thought about it all morning. This seemed to be their path, but she felt so unsure, so uneducated in the history of the Jedi. Ben had loads still to teach her.

There was also the pleasant memory of the first time she and Ben had touched hands in one of these very huts. It was the first time she truly connected with him on an intimate level, and it would always be a special memory in her heart.

Although she tried not to, she missed Master Luke. He might have been a bit of a grump, but his presence still lingered on the island. His power was immense, no matter how hard he had tried to deny it. He had been the son of Vader, after all, and certain in the ways of the Force. If only she could have spent a little more time with him.

A lightsaber's hum pulled Rey from her thoughts. Ben stood at the door to their hut, practically filling the entire opening, with his purple saber ignited.

"Want to practice?" he asked with a grin on his face.

A little bit of movement was exactly what she needed. Her mornings used to be filled with travelling to old Star Destroyers and scavenging for whatever she could find. Resistance meetings didn't quite fill her need for motion. With a quick flick of her wrist, her palm opened and the Force pulled her lightsaber to her. It burst to life underneath her fingers, filling her with energy.

Lithe as a deer, Ben pushed himself backwards, flipping around and landing downhill, yards away. Rey ran to meet him, flying through the air with her saber prepared to strike. As soon as she landed, their blades clashed, electricity vibrating the air around them. It was energizing to move, to feel, to fight. With a smirk, Rey struck at him again and again. Each time, he blocked her in turn.

They were a perfect match, both equally powerful in the Force, both aware of each other's fighting style. Yet, one thing kept them both from releasing their full potential - both no longer wished to hurt the other.

After a few minutes of back and forth motion, they both paused, breathless.

"I have a lesson for you," Ben announced when he caught his breath. "I'm going to teach you how to use the Dark Side."

Rey wiped the sweat from her brow. "Alright?" It was a new concept to not think badly of the Dark Side, but she was interested in whatever he had to teach her.

He pointed his saber at her. "You become distracted and careless when you use the Dark Side. You must learn to control it."

Her hands tightened on her own saber. She wasn't quite sure she knew what he meant.

"Your anger," he continued in between breaths, "can make you stronger. Channel it, control it. Don't let it control you. Don't let it unbalance you."

That sounded easy enough. There was only one problem. She didn't feel angry at all.

Ben lunged at her, and, distracted, she barely dodged him in time, though she wasn't afraid of him at all. Instead, her clumsiness embarrassed her. Quickly, she focused. Using the Force, she jumped on top of a nearby ridge of boulders and ran across it, blocking his strikes. When she landed on the ground, she felt nothing but joy. This wasn't like training at all. This was _fun_.

She rounded on him, pulling one of his moves by flipping her saber's handle and chopping at him in a backswing. He jumped back, and she missed him.

"That's _my_ move," he chuckled, moving quickly and catching her saber arm in an awkward angle. She twisted beneath him, pivoting her wrist, now pushing his saber down.

He dropped it, catching it beneath their hands and pulling up a new strike with a boyish gleam in his eye.

"And that's mine!" she giggled back, pushing him with the Force. He tumbled but caught himself. It was too late. She had taken off running.

Ben caught her quickly, knocking her forward with a push through the Force, unbalancing her. It was almost too easy to dodge her attack as she rounded on him again. They could practically read each other's minds, seeing their moves just a second before they happened. They continued their sparring until their sabers locked in a clash just in front of their chests, both pushing equally but neither gaining.

Completely breathless, Ben stared at her strained face as she pushed with all her might. He couldn't help himself. He was supposed to be teaching her right now, but all he wanted was to touch her.

He flicked two fingers and both sabers shut off.

Rey's eyes blinked in confusion for only a second before Ben grabbed her waist and pulled her to him in a kiss.

It was a long, passionate kiss, possibly the longest they had shared. The island seemed to fade away beneath them as time stood still. He never wanted to let go of her. She never wanted him to. Every fiber of their beings seemed in sync and connected.

When they finally pulled apart for air, Ben could see her cheeks redden.

"Was that the Dark Side?" she asked with a sideways, sheepish grin.

He laughed. "No, you just distracted me."

She smiled back at him, obviously as undone as he was, before wrapping a hand through his hair and pulling his mouth back to hers. She didn't realize how forcefully she pulled at him, and they began to fall, rolling down a hill together, a delightful pile of laughter. Only one thing stopped their gaining momentum - the caretakers pushing a cart down the hill. The two tumbled right into them, knocking the cart and the two, tired workers over.

Rey couldn't stop laughing. So far, this trip to the island had been nothing like her last one. There was so much work to be done, but it didn't matter because all of this would be so _fun._ And Ben was here, with her, and she felt nothing but happiness. Never in her life had she felt this light and free.

It almost felt wrong, like she didn't deserve to have such a cheerful existence and belonging in the galaxy that always felt against her. She still felt the weight of the burden they shared to bring the Jedi back to life, but right now, in this moment, she only felt inexplicable joy.

Ben apologized to the caretakers who were fussing loudly. He set their cart back up and sent them on their way before giving Rey a helping hand.

"Did you learn anything?" he asked with a breathless chuckle.

Rey raised an eyebrow. "I may have learned a thing or two," she said with a grin. Never having been romantically involved before, Ben's kisses startled her at first and made her feel uneasy. Now, they were another thing added to the fun list. She quite enjoyed kissing him. It was one of those mind blowing things that simply made her happy when she felt like she didn't deserve it.

"I guess I'm not a very good teacher," Ben dramatically sighed before taking her face in his hands and staring so deeply into her eyes that Rey almost felt unnerved.

"I love you," was all he said, so softly she could barely hear it.

Rey missed her friends, her family, her new home. She had dreams about them last night, but when she awoke most of her fear and anxiety was gone. She felt at home again, deep in her spirit, because she was with Ben.

His love for her was almost too much for her to bear. She had never thought love would be like this - so sure, so deep, so searing. Every inch of her felt redeemed and right, and somehow, she knew this feeling would last forever.

"I love you, too," she whispered before they closed the distance between them. She could kiss him forever, lost in a world of pure emotion and pleasure. There was nothing else like this in the entire galaxy.

Ben pulled away from her quicker than she expected. He ran a finger over her crinkled brow before smiling.

"You're happy."

"I am," she smiled back.

He blinked away from her; his grin couldn't be any wider.

"What is it?" Rey finally asked, not understanding.

"Nothing," Ben shrugged, still grinning. "I'm just happy, too."

She leaned up and kissed his cheek before winding her arms around him. He hugged her back, tightly, holding her as if she was the most precious thing in the universe.

Rey hadn't noticed her hair had come undone in their tumble until she felt a thick piece blow into her face. She pulled away from Ben and fumbled for a tie.

"Leave it down," he said, and she eyed him curiously.

He only shrugged. "I like it."

She left it then, and they made their way hand in hand to a nice, grassy clearing that looked like a perfect place to practice without fear of tumbling down a large hill.

"Okay, let's try this again," Ben said, forcing his face into a stern expression. Their sabers ignited and the clash of blades filled the empty valley with an iconic, reverberating echo that could only mean one thing.

Rey and Ben, the last Jedi, were home.

*****Stay safe and well everyone. I'll update when I can. *****


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